Taking Measures
by MM995
Summary: Stoick has married Hiccup to Astrid before dragon training began. However, the marriage is cut short when Hiccup's attempt to bring peace between vikings and dragons ends in his banishment. Regardless, he plans to finish the task with all the means at his disposal. Meanwhile, Astrid has her own troubles and issues on Berk. Story deviation of the fic 'The Choice' by reens.
1. Chapter 1

**Hello. I hope I get many readers with this story. This fic is an AU story, but not of HTTYD 1 or any episode from Riders/Defenders of Berk, but of an already written AU fic called 'The Choice' by the author 'Reens'. I generally like 'Hiccup running away' fics, but they all have the exact same background, which is HTTYD 1. This 'Hiccup running away' fic happens in the same universe as 'The Choice' and that story provides it's background. Therefore, it is recommended that you read 'The Choice' before reading this.**

**That's it for explanations. Read and enjoy!**

**Revised: **02/03/2015

* * *

The sea was calm with a gentle breeze bringing up a few peaces of foam and creating small waves. It was a sunny day, perfect for going out and performing whichever activities came to mind, whether it was hard work and toil or rest and relaxation.

The only dark stain on the white walls of this serene scenery were the two battered, charred and barely floating viking longboats. On each of these ships were more peolpe than the ship was intended to hold. On the bow of the slightly less battered one stood a mountain of a man. Jaw-droppingly muscular, 6'9 and a face coated with a thick, red beard, the name of this man is Stoick ˝The Vast" Haddock, chief of Berk.

He and his people were returning from another failed expedition to find and conquer the Dragon's Nest, which is the home to many species of dragons that raid the viking island of Berk every several weeks. Almost all vikings agree and think that they're just mindless and sadistic beasts who take utter enjoyment in killing their clansmen and generally making their life exceedingly hard; as if life wasn't hard enough already in the cold Meridian of Misery.

The chief, however, wasn't thinking about that at the moment, but was thinking about how things are back home. He had just recently married of his son, Hiccup Haddock III, to a fierce and talented viking girl named Astrid Hofferson. Most people would think he did it so Berk could safely have an heir, since no one knows what could happen in a place as dangerous as this. But the main reason Stoick did it was because his son was so damn... _Different__._

Hiccup is not your regular viking in more ways than one. Most noticeably, he is very skinny and scrawny and thus is unable to fight and do things the usual viking way and if there is one thing that is common amongst these warriors of the north, it's their insularity and nearly-obsessive clingigness to tradition. Everything different is an insult and shame.

Hiccup also doesn't generally think like most vikings since he likes to study and learn, tries to think in such a profound way that it would give most vikings a headache and likes to build various contraptions and machines. While maybe Romans or some more intelectually inclined civilizations would love to have someone like him, vikings deem these things as uneccessary, bothersome and weird. That is why, incredibly, the son of the great chief Stoick the Vast is the outcast of the tribe and is oftenly called Hiccup the Useless.

That is why Stoick married him off to this skillful viking girl as he believes she could change him to be more like the rest and easier for Stoick to understand and get along with. He loves his son. He really does, but for a man so set in doing things the traditional way, having such an aberrant offspring leaves him frustrated and confounded. It also leaves him sad since he reminds him so much of his late wife who was rather different on her own account.

Rather skinny, unfailingly kind, quite intelligent and interested in several things that most vikings would dismiss, she was a bit of an outcast like Hiccup but not as much since she had decent fighting skills. The resemblence between son and deceased mother leaves him forlorn every time he looks at his boy, not to mention the fact that said boy probably doesn't have anything in common with his father.

Stoick couldn't find the strength to look at the being that reminded him so much of Valhlallarama, therefore he started avoiding him, as selfish and irresponsible as it is. After it became blatantly obvious that Stoick wasn't going to remarry, people started having high expectations of his son, but after it became just as blatantly obvious that Hiccup couldn't meet most of them, people started scorning and shunning him, including his peers, who used to be quite close to him. When Hiccup was about eleven years old, he started making various contraptions to capture and kill dragons so people wouldn't shun him anymore and his father could be proud of him, but most of those did more harm than good. After Stoick finally found some strength to look at his son, too great a rift had already been created.

Stoick _knows_ this marriage is a bit of an excuse because he is incapable of doing anything concerning his son. However, he also knows that Hiccup is the future chief of the tribe and frankly, some things need to be changed about him if he is to be chief. He _needs_ to be prepared and Stoick is willing to do anything to get it done. A viking village needs to be led by a viking, and Hiccup, the way he is now, probably couldn't be called one.

A shout of panic from the other boat brought him back to reality and turned to look. There was something in the distance coming towards the other ship and it took Stoick a few moments to realize what's going on. The ship was being attacked by a Scauldron, a dragon that inhabits those waters. It is nearly 70 feet long and light green in color with a long jaw, a thin but long neck and a rather bloated body where it stores water for it's signature attack, which is spraying scaulding hot water on it's prey. The dragon was heading straight for the other longboat with great speed and the intention to ram it. The vikings new it wouldn't hold against such force, considering all the damage it's already taken. Just as they predicted, the ship was nearly split in half but fortunately, all the vikings on the ship had already jumped off before the dragon struck the ship.

Stoick started giving orders to his men, "Distract the dragon. Do not let it get to the men.", while at the same time Stoick noticed something he could use. In a hole on the ship, a large boulder, a little bigger than his torso, was stuck when it fell from one of the rock pillars that are in Helheim's Gate. He grabbed it, pulled it up and over his head and took aim. Just as the Scauldron was about to kill a woman holding on to a piece of drifting wood, he threw it and the boulder found its mark. It hit the dragon directly on it's snout and nearly broke several of it's front teeth. After whimpering a bit, it swam off to Gods know where.

The vikings cheered and started to pull the drenched men and women onto the remaining ship. However, the ship was quite damaged and most likely wouldn't hold all the way back to Berk. Luckily, this wasn't the first time that such a situation occured and Stoick knows of an island several hours away which has plenty of wood and wildlife where they could get the neccessary provisions to repair the ship, fill their bellies and spend the night.

With that thought in mind, he bellows, "Hard to starboard. We'll be taking a short stop on an island to repair the boat and gather some provisions. It is just a few hours away so all of you should prepare for some hunting and wood chopping.". His men all readily agreed and started sharpening and repeiring their weapons and tools as much as they could.

* * *

Five hours later, they came to an uninhabited island about half the size of Berk that looked as if it was divided in two parts. Both were rather circular with one being noticeably larger than the other. The parts were connected with a narrow piece of land. The bigger had sandy beaches and it was a very forested in the middle with a few clearings and meadows. The smaller one's coast was filled with large stones and boulders, but the most noticeable trait was that it had a forest-covered hill about 500 feet tall.

Some vikings started setting up camp while others went to gather wood and hunt for animals. Stoick kept himself busy by ordering his men around, organising everything, supervising and lending a helping hand here and there.

Later that night, when everybody had their fill of food and most had gone to sleep, the viking chief had ordered several men to stand guard just in case, he himself included.

While he was concentrated on keeping watch, his thoughts still went back to Berk and his scrawny son. He had put him and the other teens in dragon training to gain the neccessary skill and experience in fighting dragons. He couldn't help but worry about his son. He wasn't the most athletic person on the island and, even with Astrid now as his wife, was afraid that something might happen to him. He couldn't lose him the same way he lost his dear Valhallarama.

These thoughts kept him awake for the rest of his shift.

* * *

Sunshine crept through an open window in the Haddock household in Berk and fell on a young and freckled face. The 14 year old teen grumbled a little at being woken so early. After a few unsuccessful atempts to fall asleep, Hiccup Haddock III finally decided that sleep will elude him for the rest of the morning and sat up in his bed. He shook his head a little to clear his still bleary vision as well as blow away the cobwebs a bit.

He looked around his room, which is exactly as he remembers it to be. However, his eyes stop and widen ,and his brain shuts down for a few moments, when they land on something he wasn't expecting to see.

A mane of bright, golden hair.

Hiccup's been married to Astrid for nearly three weeks now and they've been sleeping in the same room, but he has never woken up before her or seen her sleep with light of dawn coating her beautiful and, at the moment, serene-looking face. He couldn't help but stare at the girl he loves with a look that speaks nothing but pure and unadulterated admiration and care. Nevertheless, he looked away after inspecting every line of her face the same way Fishlegs would inspect every page of the dragon manual. Knowing how early she wakes up, she could open her eyes at any given moment and then he'd get a hard punch to the shoulder for staring. He couldn't, however, keep a soft and happy smile from coming on his face. Yesterday, he showed her Toothless and they became faster friends that he had expected. He took her flying afterwards and he could remember the look of elated wonder on her face, how she had hugged him tight from behind and put her head on his shoulder. It all meant one thing to Hiccup.

His fantasy future of living a happy and long life with Astrid as his wife might become reality.

That smile fell of his face and was replaced with a contemplative frown as soon as he remembered what today was. He was _privilaged_ with the chance of slaying the Monstrous Nightmare, since he won dragon training. He knew of course that he couldn't do it and after witnessing how the giant dragon ruled the nest and forced the dragons to raid, he was sure that Astrid couldn't either.

His people have as much bias and prejudice as they have expectations and are a people who always look at things subjectively, people who are easiliy blinded by personal opinions and emotions. The hypocrisy wasn't lost on Hiccup since vikings liked to proclaim that they are heartless warriors who don't let sentiment blind their judgment. He was, thus, afraid that his plans for viking and dragon cohabitation ware an exercise in futility.

"Hey." a voice sounded beside him.

He jumped a bit and turned to look at Astrid, who was giggling slightly at his action, still lying in bed. The giggles ended quickly and the smile was replaced with a searching look, "What's the frown for? What are you thinking about?", she asked, even though she probably knew.

Hiccup kept the bewildered look on his face a few moments longer before it was replaced with a blank, somewhat sarcastic look, "Good morning to you too."

Her response was a glare and he shrunk back a bit, but stayed in place.

"I'm just worried. There a-are just so many ways that things couldgo wrong today. I-I know we should trust our people, but you know how vikings can be.", he said with the previous frown back on his face.

Indeed, she did. She wasn't any different until Hiccup came in and messed it all up. Though, in Astrid's opinion, it was a good kind of mess and she was grateful. She has her doubts, but she knows if anyone could do this, it was him.

"I know. Believe me, I do. I used to believe the viking way was perfect. Infallible. But you made me see that there are so many things that could be much better. What's the point of all this if we don't even try.", she said.

Amazingly enough, Hiccup perked up only a slight bit, despite Astrid being the one who had said this.

"It's just I'm... I'm afraid of messing up... like I always do.", Hiccup said, with the last part being barely a whisper. Astrid frowned and wanted to scold him for his lack of confidence, but she stopped herself at the last second.

For most of his life, he was led to believe he was worthless and useless, including her. He and his peers had all been so close, but they all knew that the bond between Hiccup and her had been even stronger. There wasn't anything that one didn't know about the other. Then, after the death of his mother and the crippling of her father, it's like all those times meant nothing to them, especially her.

She had scorned him and made him feel unwelcome... just because. He was unviking-like and she had taken him for granted, ignoring his feelings and the bond, that was as strong, probably stronger than the one Toothless and Hiccup had now, was thrown away because of her own narrow-mindedness and petty, selfish feelings.

Her own behaviour was far more reprehensible and scolding him would make her nothing more than a hypocrite.

"Then if things get messed up, _we _messed them up together.", she said and gently grabbed his upper arm, while he stared gobsmacked at her.

She continued on, "I know it might seem that all the weight is on your shoulders, but it's not. I'm in on this as well and you better not count me out, Haddock."

After a few more seconds of staring at her, which promptly resulted in her blushing, he smiled, "Thanks. I needed that."

"Yeah, dragon boy. You're welcome", she said and, after a moment of hesitation, punched him in the shoulder.

"Hey, I wasn't worrying anymore.", Hiccup replied, or whined would be the more accurate term.

"That was for making me say all those mushy things _and_ for staring at me earlier."

With that she got out of bed, put on her boots, braided her hair and went downstairs, leaving Hiccup slightly slack-jawed. He shook his head eventually, figuring that contemplating it would be too much of a pain and grumbles something about girls being weird.

* * *

As the Great Hall bustled with people who have come for their breakfast, the two young vikings were eating alone in one of the corners. As Astrid ate, she noticed Hiccup picking on his food with thoughtful and somewhat insecure look on his face. She groaned out loud, which caught his attention.

"Hiccup, I told you to stop worrying so much. Seriously. If you don't stop, I'm gonna deck you in the face this time." she said exasperatedly.

He laughed sheepishly and scratched the back of his head, "M-Me. Worry. W-What makes y-you s-say that. I was just.." he stops when she gives him unimpressed look. He sighs and, after a few moments of fidgeting and contemplating, finally relents, "Astrid, I need you to promise me something."

She looks at him inquisitively and nods, giving him the silent signal to continue.

He gulps before speaking, "If something goes wrong today, I want you to not reveal yourself as an accomplice in what we were doing."

She stares at him wide-eyed before scowling in anger, "_What? _No. How can you ask me that?"

"If things go bad, I will either get banished or... executed. It'd be bad enough if I get in trouble over this, I can't let you get dragged in this yourself."

"No, Hiccup. No. I thought you trusted me. There is no way I'm gonna let what I said earlier today be meaningless."

"I _do _trust you. If the worst happens, I know I can trust you with keeping Toothless safe and a secret, but it'd be stupid to cause more pain than is needed."

"So after finally finding some middle ground between us, after all of that effort to bring us closer together, you push me away. I'm not gonna stand for it and let you suffer alone because of some misplaced sense of righteousness and loyalty."

For the first time in maybe forever, Hiccup glares at her, "What about your family? How do you think they would feel if something like that happens?"

Astrid stops her tirade to stare at him gobsmacked. Hiccup continues, "I'm sorry Astrid, but if something horrible happens to you, it would mean pain for more than just yourself. How devestated do you think they would be if it was public knowledge that their daughet is a traitor, not to mention the banishment or the possible execution?"

She doesn't need to think about it. She knows how painful it would be for them, but she can't stop what she has already started. She can't let him in good conscience face this alone, "What about your father? This won't be a walk in the woods for him either."

He hangs his head for a moment, before raising it with a determined glint in his eyes, "You said it yourself. I can't know what will happen if I don't try. I'm the one who started this, I'm the one facing the Nightmare in the ring, which means I'm the one who needs to do this and face whatever consequences befall me."

She couldn't help but be proud of him for his words and his determenation, but she still think the burden should be shared. However, before she could voice her opinion, he continued, "Besides, how do you think the others will treat your family if it is revealed that their daughter is a traitor of the viking way? You do know that their reputation isn't anything to brag about, even if you are married to the chief's son, don't you? And you know why that is, as well."

That stopped her dead on her tracks, wide-eyed at the facts she hadn't considered before. She hangs her head in shame when she realises how selfish her thoughts were. She wanted to believe that what Hiccup was implying wouldn't happen, that the vikings of Berk were better than that, but alas, she knows what he says is true.

While vikings are not evil or innately malicious, they _are_ a prejudiced, judgemental and narrow-minded people, prone to making subjective, short-sighted decisions. There is little doubt that her family would feel the deep scorn and mistrust of the villagers should Astrid be found out. The reputation of her family has been steadily declining ever since her father became unable to help out in the raids, though the main reason for that wasn't his crippled state, since such injuries walk the line between common and rare in their society.

The main reason for the drop in their reputation is the support Astrid's parents have been giving to Hiccup ever since his mother's death. While other families shunned and badmouthed him, they defended him whenever the topic of him came up which, consequently, resulted in a steady decline of favour towards the Hofferson family. The only thing keeping their reputation afloat was Astrid's prodigious skills.

She used to hold it against them, but now, she couldn't feel more ashamed of herself for having the very simple-minded and biased views she was currently criticising the villagers for. She couldn't be more grateful to Hiccup for giving her the chance to repent herself to him.

She sighs and finally relents, "Alright, I'll do it your way, but _you _have to promise me that you'll do your best to not let things go wrong."

"Gobber has a soft spot for me and you said it yourself, he is more negotiable than dad. I'm sure he'll at least listen to me and if he refuses to believe what I say, then he'll probably give me a lighter punishment than he would give most." Hiccup said.

She was about to agree, but was interrupted by the very man they were talking, who took the liberty to sit across from them.

"Hey Hiccup, Astrid. Good to see you two getting... acquainted, though I'd save it for after he becomes the dragon training champion. During the celebration, I'm _sure _you'll be able to find a private little closet to... _exchange gifts._" Gobber said, wagging his eyebrows during the last part.

Both blush red in embarrassment, with Astrid scowling and Hiccup trying to look anywhere but at her or the village smith.

"T-Thanks Gobber, for the... uh *cough*.. mental image. That's very nice and... helpful of you." the embarrassed male teen said. Astrid turns to look at him with an expression that is between incredulity, disgust and unimpression. Gobber just chuckles.

"Oh come on. You've already done it. What's wrong with trying to get a little more experience. I mean, I used to be a teen viking too, you know. I know the feeling. Both of you are prime viking material, although you _could _eat and exercise a little more, my apprentice." he said with a wink. It only caused more blood to flow into the two young vikings heads.

Gobber outright laughs this time. He quickly composes himself though, "Anyways, I'm here to tell you some good news."

Hiccup looks at him questioningly, "What is it?"

"I have postponed your match til your father arrives. I have no doubt you'd be happy to have Stoick see you slay the Monstrous Nightmare and so would he. He's going to be so proud of you when he finds that you of all people have placed first in dragon training."

At that moment, both teens could swear that they could feel their hearts stop. Things suddenly got much more complicated and _much _more difficult and the little hope they had of succeeding all but vanished.

After all, Stoick is the man who lost his grandfather, father and beloved wife to dragons.

* * *

**What do you think? I know that Astrid seems OOC, but I think it was simply perfect for the given situation. No flames please, only constructive criticism.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Here's the second chapter. 'The Choice', which this fic is based on, belongs to the fanfiction author Reens.**

* * *

"What are we gonna do?"asked a frantic Hiccup. He and Astrid were in the cove with Toothless. They came here right after Gobber told them that Hiccup would slay the Monstrous Nightmare in front of the entire village as soon as his father arrived.

He continued,"This wasn't part of the plan. W-We were supposed to show them that dragons aren't bad and that they can be trained while Gobber is here because __he __would have listened at least. My father is not going to listen. He never does. I of all people know THAT. Oh, this is all so messe-".

"HICCUP, FOR THOR'S SAKE, __CALM DOWN___. _I can't think with you running your mouth like that." Astrid indignantly yelled with a scowl. Hiccup visibly flinched and her features softened a little. With a calmer tone she said,"Look, let's just stay calm and think things through. We won't get anywhere if we panic."

Hiccup visibly calmed down and after a few moments of silence asked,"What do you think we should do?"

Astrid sighed and said,_"___Maybe __we, or at least __you__, should have a little more faith in him. Hiccup, your dad is rather bull-headed and stubborn, but you're __his son__. He should at least listen to you."

He scoffed,"Me being his son didn't stop him from ignoring and not listening to me before. Trust me Astrid, he'd pay more attention to what an idiot like Snotlout or Mildew would say than pay attention to what I say."

She had a bit of an incredulous expression one her ,"C'mon on Hiccup. You're exaggerating" she said with a small laugh.

He looked at her with the same serious look on his face as he had when he told her not to reveal herself and Astrid's expression turned to one of mild astonishment. The chief had always been a great man in her eyes, always helped people when he could, was always cordial and friendly, strict and stern when he needed to be and always caring towards his people. She had also thought that it meant that he was also one heck of a father, a parent that every viking offspring would __love__to have.

But Hiccup's words, serious expression, as well as the broken-hearted tone of his next words made her, for the forst time ever, doubt him.

Hiccup's serious look remained but gained a slight, but visible, bit of sadness and misery,"No, Astrid. I am not."

He most certainly wasn't. After his mother died, Stoick started to neglect Hiccup. Not a lot, but it was more than noticeable and it gradually worsened. Hiccup at first figured that he was still mourning, that he needed some alone time and that he reminded him too much of her. His father had always told him that he was just like her. He tried to get his attention with various things like drawing good pictures, making small contraptions of sundry purposes and by showing him the weapons and tools he was able to fix and sharpen.

But every time he did that, his father would give a small smile that didn't reach his eyes and half-heartidly say something along the lines of 'good work'. He would rarely ever look him in the eyes and when he did it would only be for a few moments before he would give him some excuse and leave.

Sometimes, when Stoick would see another younger viking do something like hit a target with a spear or an axe, or successfuly perform some combat moves with a sword or a hammer, he would congratulate them with a real smile and a jovial exclamation of how their parents should be proud of them. It hurt Hiccup to see this since he couldn't do such things with his build. What hurt worse was that his father never noticed his pain. Never noticed how miserable he was when people rejected, scorned, shuned and humiliated him. Or if he did, he didn't do anything about it; not even talk to him. He could never talk to him about his problems because he would never listen. The one person Hiccup thought he could count on after his mother died, practically left him to fend for himself.

Appereantly, he also unintentionally voiced his thoughts out loud, because he noticed Astrid staring at him with an incredulously forlorn expression on her face, one that also spoke of sympathy and pity. Hiccup looked away. He couldn't stand to let her see him like this. This vulnerable. This __weak__.

Astrid was finally able to find her voice,"Hiccup."

He didn't turn around.

With a stronger voice she said,"Hiccup, look at me."

After a few silent moments, he turned to look at her. His face spoke of utter misery and loneliness which made her, along with his confession about his father, curse herself more than ever for abandoning him. She promised herself that she would never do that to him again and that she would be there for him, just as he always was for her.

With that, she hugged him and softly said,"I'm sorry... for everything." hoping he would inderstand what 'everything' meant.

He seemingly did because he hugged her back and said,"It's alright."

Something suddenly got between them, which they noticed was Toothless, who had just finished eating the basket of fish they brought him. He must have sensed Hiccup's distress because he had a compassionate look in his green eyes and gave Hiccup a low whine.

Hiccup smiled gently, scratched him on his head and said,"It's Ok Toothless. Everything's alright."

He didn't notice Astrid's fist heading towards his shoulder and colliding with it. He gave a pained yelp and looked at her, slightly miffed.

He gave a loud and long sigh and said,"Let me guess. For making you say all that mushy stuff."

Her expression turned to one of mock pride,"Exatcly. You're starting to catch on, dragon boy."

After that she grabbed his vest and pulled him towards her and gave him a kiss on the cheek, "That was for opening up and trusting me."she said.

Before Hiccup could even make his usual goofy expression, Toothless gave an annoyed and bored grumble and started motioning towards the saddle on his back.

"Okay, okay. We'll go flying."Hiccup said with a smile. He turned towards Astrid and said,"You might wanna reconsider flying with us this time since I promised Toothless to do a lot of crazy stunts with him."

Astrid considered it. A gentle flight had frightened her and made her think she would fall down with a hard splat. She couldn't imagine what a wild ride was going to do to her. After a minute of contemplating she finally decided,"We're vikings. It's an occupational hazzard."

Hiccup's smile turned somewhat cheeky,"You asked for it."

After they got on saddle and strapped themselves in, Toothless took off at nearly top speed and Astrid screamed.

* * *

They came back to the cove a couple of hours later and made their way towards the village. The ride today had truly been a wild one. She was terrified at first, with Hiccup and Toothless doing corkscrews, loop-de-loops and almost any other stunt that came to their mind, short of Hiccup doing a freefall with Toothless. She had gotten used to it quickly though and started whooping in joy.

She still slugged him on the shoulder when they touched down for not giving her a better warning, though it was lighter than usual since she was still visibly happy.

They went inside the Great Hall, took a plate of food and sat down next to each other. The silence was a bit uncomfortable since both of them knew they still had to decide how to go about things with Stoick in the picture now.

In the end it was Astrid who spoke up,"So? What are we gonna do?". She really hoped that Hiccup had come up with something because she came up with a big, blank, mocking __nothing__.

"It's best if we just do things as we planned. It will be a long shot, but it already was one, even without my father. I'll just have to be more convicing. I'll just have to try harder." he answered with a resigned frown on his face.

Astrid was about to say something but was interrupted by a loud, obnoxious voice,"Hey, there you guys are."

Both of them turned to look towards the source of said voice. Snotlout was walking towards their table with Ruffnut, Tuffnut and Fishlegs behind him. They sat themselves on the long stool with Snotlout, Tuffnut and Ruffnut seated opposite of them and Fishlegs seated to Hiccup's left. Hiccup became visibly uncormfortable, or at least he did to Astrid. She understood him. Just until recently, all of them spent their free time mocking, insulting and bullying Hiccup, except for Fishlegs. Only when Hiccup started performing exceptionally well in dragon training did they start to consider him a friend.

But Astrid understood something else, the same thing she had told Ruffnut several days ago. They did not know the __real him___. _They didn't know him __at all___. _They always took him at facial value and judged him before they actually knew him. She knew she wasn't one to talk but she was making an effort to try to understand and know him as Hiccup Haddock, not Hiccup the Useless or Hiccup the Magnificent or Iron Fist or whichever moniker they gave him. Hiccup does the same with her and she will give as good as she gets.

"H-Hey, guys. What's up?" asks Hiccup with a slightly shaky voice.

"We just wanted to congratulate you on your victory and wish you good luck in the kill ring. You'll probably need it. The Monstrous Nightmare has firepower 15, speed 16, attack 15 and-" Fishlegs started but didn't get to finish because Snotlout interrupted.

"Blah, blah, blah. He doesn't need those things. All he needs is skill and power. You know, like the skill and power that I have, though you've all probably noticed already." he said with smirk on his face,"Right,cuz?"

Hiccup's face became slightly more serious,"In life, there is no such thing as useless knowledge or skill. Expert wielding of a weapon and the strength of five Roman men are great things to have, but knowledge and information are also poweful weapons. Knowing your enemy's wekness and knowing how to exploit it can mean the difernce between life and death, Snotlout." he finished, after which he noticed his peers and several adults close to their table staring at him in astonishment.

Astrid regained her composure first, smirked and whispered to his ear teasingly,"It seems you're the son of a chief after all."

Hiccup sent her a dry, slightly amused look. He figured, now that he had their attention and respect, it was high time to teach them a lesson, especially Snotlout. To show that he is not as incapable and foolish as most people make him out to be. He wanted to show them, as Astrid said, that he is the son of their chief after all.

Snotlout shook his head as if to blow away the cobwebs "C'mon, you know that only muscle can win battles. Having brains is good, although I wouldn't count on them, but _these_ babies" he pointed to his biceps as if they were actually his babies "are _the best_. They crush skulls, breack necks, break bones _and _make you look good too. Thinking just makes everything too complicated and it's too much of a pain."

"Snotlout, this is why I call you an idiot most of the time." Astrid piped up. "Not thinking things through, just charging in or doing pretty much anything without considering the consequences can lead to a lot of trouble, harm or even _death _for you _and _other people_. _That's why the best warrior is the one who can fight both hard and smart."

Snotlout looked towards her and said with mild indignance"Whose side are you on? Of this fishbone here or this piece of perfect viking here.. ME."

Astrid just rolled her eyes and smirked "I'm on the side of the truth."

Tuffnut looked confused "Uum.. who's this truth you're talking about?" he asked.

Ruffnut groaned at his idiocy and smacked him behind the head,"You numbnuts. She meant that she doesn't have sides. That she is just saying what the truth is. Man, you're such a dumbass."

Tuffnut turned towards her,"Oh yeah. Well, the truth is, with your looks and body, you couldn't get a guy to marry you if mom and dad were giving you away free of charge."

Snoutlout laughed uproariously and he and Tuffnut high-fived. Meanwhile, Ruffnut was fuming. She grabbed her brother by the back of his head and slammed it to the table. Thankfully, he still had his helmet to absorb most of the blow but it didn't mean that it didn't hurt.

"What did you say, ass-wipe?!" she said.

"What you heard me say, troll breath!" he countered.

"Dung-brain!"

"Shit-face!"

"Butt-elf!"

"Bride of Grendel!"

While this was one of the rare times that a Nut fight was entertaining, Astrid still told Hiccup, loud enough for only him to hear,"Let's go home."

Hiccup got a strange but comfortable feeling when she said 'home'. Their home. The home they share. The bed they share. The last thought made him blush and he shook his head. There's no way he and Astrid were going to do anything _like that _for quite some time, no matter how much they've been getting along. She'd pound him like a drum if he voiced his thoughts.

It was sunset outside as they made their way home. Astrid stopped all of a sudden as an idea hit her. She grabbed Hiccup's hand as she changed direction. Hiccup was confused but obeyed. After a litle bit of walking he noticed that they were heading towards her former living quarters.

"Astrid, why are we going to your parents house?" asked Hiccup.

Astrid looked at him with a smile,"I want you to have a real family dinner. My mom's a great cook. You'll love anything she makes. Besides, eating dinner is always better with good company and my parents love you."

Hiccup remembered all the times her mother tried to defend him in front of others. He was truly greatful and touched every time she did that, and a little guilty because it didn't put her in a good light when she defended Hiccup the Useless. Sometimes, he thought that the only thing that was preserving the Hofferson reputation was the promise Astrid showed as a viking prodigy.

Before he knew it, Astrid was knocking on the front door. After a few moments it opened and it showed the slightly skinnier than average frame of Astrid's mother. As soon as she noticed who it was, a big smile apperead on her face and Hiccup couldn't help but smile back.

"Hey mom." Astrid said.

"Hello Mrs. Hofferson." Hiccup said.

"Well this is a lovely suprise." said Adrianna Hofferson. Her family had a habit of giving prettier names than most vikings give to their offspring. That is how Astrid got her's. When she noticed their hands, still interwined, her smile turned even softer,"Oh, I'm so glad that everything is going so well between you two. Now we can have a real family dinner."

Astrid was confused for a moment but she understood as soon as she noticed their hands. Hiccup appareantly did as well because he blushed a deep red, a hue just slightly deeper than hers, and tried to let go. However, Astrid decidded that, while they weren't really a couple in the more spiritual sense, they were still married and they did get along well after they both put effort into it. Therefore, she held his hand tightly and pulled him inside the house, smirking slightly at his yelp of half-hearted protest.

Inside, Astrid's father, Almsteinn Hofferson, was setting up the table while her brothers, the older Adam and the younger Almarr, were playing with each other. When Almsteinn noticed them he smiled, a smile as wide and gentle as his wife's,"Astrid. Hiccup. This is a lovely suprise. Came here for Adrianna's classic mutton with bread and cabbage, ha. Well, the more the merrier."

"Hi dad." said Astrid.

"Hi Mr. Hoff-...um..dad" said Hiccup with a somewhat unsure tone.

Astrid turned to stare at him with a gaping mouth. When she looked at her father, she noticed he was still smiling. She then realized that they must have spoken to one another and he had insisted that Hiccup call him dad.

"Well, I see you have the nerve to call him dad while still calling me Mrs. Hofferson." said Adrianna with a frown on her face.

Hiccup immediately started sweating and coming up with excuses "I-I'm sorry. I-It's just that he.. and I-I.. we.. uh..well"

She decided to take pity on him and started laughing. After she calmed down somewhat she said "It's alright dearie, I understand. Though I also insist that you call me mom."

Hiccup regained some of his composure and cracked a nervous smile. Although mostly composed on the outside, Astrid was laughing on the inside. This was just too precious.

"Now. Let's have some dinner, shall we." said Adrianna. Everybody readily agreed.

After setting up the table, seating themselves and passing the plates full of food around, they dug in and started sharing friendly banter amongst themselves.

Hiccup, seeing them all eating together, chatting with each other and joking with each other in a most comfortable, calming and warm atmosphere, and him being a part of all this, felt something he didn't feel for a long time, ever since his mother died. Something that Stoick couldn't make him feel because he was too aloof and Snotlout couldn't because he was so ashamed to be related to Hiccup the Useless.

He felt like he was truly part of a family.

* * *

To Stoick's great fortune, the seas were calm that night. Standing on the bow of the longship, which was now in significantly better shape than it was a day and a half ago, he was looking towards where he knew was home. The stop on the island had added only one and a half days to their trip and, if there aren't anymore dragon attacks or any other disturbances, they should reach Berk sometime tommorrow.

With no one needing any of his guidance or help as the chief, he thoughts were able to roam where ever they felt like roaming. At the moment, they felt like roaming towards his son. He wondered if sending him to dragon training paid off, if it didn't dismember him or if he didn't embarass himself too much. He knew the last one was unavoidable beacause while Hiccup wasn't clumsy, he wasn't fast or agile either and while he may have the strength to lift a weapon, it would still be quite heavy for him and couldn't wield it without significant effort.

He was glad when Hiccup showed interest in being a blacksmith. He had thought that Hiccup would certainly get some muscle by forging and pounding weapons. While he felt pride that he showed nearly prodigious skill for the 'art' as some would call it, he was dissapointed that it didn't change his small frame much. How would he fight dragons and protect the village. Expectations were exceptionally high for the heir of a tribe, thus, he was expected to have exceptionally high skills as a viking. The people wouldn't settle for anything less.

If the heir showed anything less, he was bound to be treated like an outcast. It has always been that way. Stoick had never thought that he would get a hiccup as a son, not with his own immense and powerful frame. Despite that many would say that Hiccup has very few good qualities, Stoick doesn't agree. He has seen how smart Hiccup is, how caring and kind he is and willing to help his people, although he always messes up. However, these traits are overshadowed by his lack of muscle, fighting skill, killer instinct and abundance of unusual interests and habits. Even to Stoick himself, the good traits won't matter much if he can't be a proper viking and a proper viking heir. That is what everybody strives to be, what everybody _should _strive to be.

He was afraid that Hiccup would remain a lousy excuse of a viking for the rest of his days. This was another reason for the marriage. If Hiccup fails to measure up to the standards and expectations, he would name Astrid as the heir. It would be utterly embarrasing for both Hiccup and Stoick should that happen, and Hiccup might hate him for it, but the needs of the people matter more than the needs of one.

While he was dissapointed in how Hiccup turned out to be, he was also dissapointed in himself because the reason for Hiccup's incompetence might be his failure in raising him properly. A child grows and matures on the words, actions and guidance of it's parents and Gods know he wasn't there to guide and help Hiccup when he needed it. He was afraid that he failed as both a father and a chief because he failed to raise his heir properly. He couldn't let go of the misery of his wife's death and Hiccup paid the price for it. He could imagine Val kicking his ass thoroughly and yelling at him like a banshee if she miraculously came down from Valhalla.

But children also need to learn some things on their own because it raises self-relience and a viking who isn't self-relient is an embarrasment as a viking. Astrid herself is a great, if not perfect example. After her father was injured, she practically gained all her skills by training on her own. She showed self-discipline that makes even him slightly envious, but most of all proud. How he wishes that his son had that.

He was almost home. He couldn't wait to see if everything turned out alright. If dragon training didn't cause permanent damage to his son. He was almost home.

He could almost smell it.

* * *

**I really hope you like this chapter.**

**Unfortunately, I'll post the next chapter next week so you'll have to be a little patient.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Here's the third chapter. 'The Choice' belongs to fanfiction author Reens.**

* * *

Astrid awakes the next morning at dawn. She rubs her eyes and turns to look at the person next to her that is still lying in bed. Hiccup was still asleep with a small smile on his face. Yesterday, they had spent the evening at her parents house and it had been wonderful. Not that dinner with her family was usually bad but ever since she has become less focused on duties and obligation and started paying attention to other things, it was esier for her to relax and enjoy the family dinner.

Another thing that made it better was that Hiccup seemed happier than ever. He had been a little awkward and insecure at first, but had relaxed after noticing how welcoming and friendly her family was. He started chatting animatedly with her parents and had a huge, bright smile on his face the entire time which, appareantly, lasted even through sleep.

Astrid was honestly happy to see him so full of life, so full of positive energy. She admired his ability to not take such small things for granted and see the good and the beauty in everything, traits she had never really had ever since her father had been injured. She thinks that Hiccup is starting to have a good influence on her since she hasn't been this happy in a long time. Hiccup has gotten more confident and outspoken and has had more genuine smiles than he has probably had in the last several years. She is hoping that is so because she has been as good as an influence on him as he has been on her.

She couldn't help but notice the extreme similarities between him and her father last night in the way they talked. She has already noticed their similarities in their beliefs and behaviour but last night, she was erased of all doubts that Hiccup was more like her father than she was. Oddly, she didn't feel bad about it. Probably because she had always believed that if she was to get married, it would be to a man like her father who is strong and brave but kind, friendly and considerate.

If people had to judge by personality, she has no doubt that people would think that Hiccup was Almsteinn's son and she Stoick's daughter. She loves her father dearly, gets along with him very well and wouldn't trade him for anyone but she couldn't help but think that she and Hiccup had both been born in the wrong family. While she would probably have been just as happy, Hiccup would probably have been a lot happier if he had Almsteinn as his father.

In a way, Astrid thought, he _is_ his father now at least.

Considering her's and Hiccup's relationship, she was pretty happy where they stood right now. She was in retrospect glad that they had gotten married and even though that thought made her think she was getting too mushy and sappy, she wasn't even a bit disgusted. He is still nervous, insecure and jumpy sometimes, but she could live with that _and _it isn't anything a punch to the shoulder, a kiss on the cheek and a few words of encouragement or mild admonishment couldn't fix.

She has noticed that she has started putting his problems before her own oftenly enough and she was willing to sacrifice comfort and time just to see him happy. She doesn't know if it's love but she is starting to believe that love is definately possible between them.

After getting out of bed she headed downstairs and took some bread with a glass of yak milk for breakfast. Not long after, Hiccup himself was coming downstairs and took the same things as Astrid. He was still a bit sleepy since he was still rubbing his eyes.

"Good morning." said Astrid.

"Yawn... good morning." said Hiccup in a somewhat tired tone.

"Still tired I see." said Astrid with a small grin.

"Yeah. It was a really good idea to go to your parent's house for dinner. Last night had been a blast." he replied.

With a small laugh Astrid said,"You're talking as if last night had been some sort of wild party."

"Hah, I think the Hofferson family dinner is better than any wild party." laughed Hiccup.

Astrid felt a swell of pride and happiness at his words, but didnt let it show,"If last night got you like this, I can't imagine what will happen when we go to a real wild party with dancing, singing and a lot of mead and ale to drink."

Hiccup grimaced,"Yeaaah, I-I'll probably just stand in the corner and watch everybody else make a fool out of themselves." he said, after which he smirked,"_However_, I've never seen _you_ drunk or party like an animal. The fierce and stoic Astrid Hofferson turned party animal, I could never miss such an opportunity. Hey, I'll even make a few drawings. Maybe I'll show them to our children and grandchildren someday."

She blushed and so did Hiccup after he realized what he just said, but Astrid regained her composure quickly. They are married and Hiccup is the son of the chief, so he is expected to have kids. Unless she asked for a divorce, it can't be changed and she doesn't feel like marrying anyone else. That last thought alone threatened to make her blush but thankfully, she was able to control it.

She decided to tease him back,"Oh yeah. Well, I'll get you so drunk you won't even be able to hold your pencil."

Hiccup narrowed his eyes,"Who says that I'll be drinking."

Astrid smirked with an evil glint in her eyes that made him gulp,"Who says you'll have a choice."

She stares at his nervous, horror stricken face for a few moments. She then, to Hiccup's astonishment, burst out laughing. A really loud belly laugh. Hiccup himself started laughing, thoung not as _passionately _as Astrid. After a minute, she finally calmed down enough to speak,"You should've seen the look on your face hahaha. You looked like a cornered rabbit. Though, considering your buck teeth and how _j__umpy_ you are, there isn't really much difference between you and a rabbit hahahaha."

At that Hiccup gave her a dry look, although the corner of his lips were twitching. In a weird way, her words made sense.

Astrid promptly stood up while still chuckling and headed towards the door. Before opening it, she turned towards him and said,"C'mon, dragon boy. Let's go see Toothless before you go to the smithy." She opened and stepped out.

Hiccup shook his head a little and followed after her.

* * *

Fishlegs was walking towards the docks with Ruffnut. It was mid-afternoon and they had agreed to wait together for the returning ships, hopefully with their parents on them alive and breathing. Gobber had told them they would probably arrive today or the day after. Fishlegs had asked her to accompany him because it would have been boring to wait for them alone and because he kind of prefered her company over, well, anybody else's as of late. She agreed immediately and he patted himself on the back for his courage in asking a girl for company.

At the moment, however, his thoughts were heading in a different direction.

"Have you noticed it?" he asked Ruffnut.

"Noticed what?" she asked in return without looking at him.

"Hiccup and Astrid. How they've changed. Not only individually but also in how they interact with each other." the chubby teen said.

She had noticed. In fact, she was meaning to talk to her about it later on. She and Hiccup had been getting along rather well lately and she hasn't seen as much of her best friend as she usually did. At first, she was a bit pissed, but she understood quickly that she and her husband needed to spend some time together and work out whatever issues they had if they wanted their marriage to work. Both of them had even left the Great Hall together before the rest of them.

Noticing that she had been quiet for a little while, she replied,"Yeah. They've been getting along rather well and spending a lot of time together."

Fishlegs nodded,"Not only that but they've both changed individually. Astrid seems uh.. calmer and more even tempered than usual, while Hiccup seems more outspoken and self-assured. I personally think they're good changes, but It's all so sudden as well. The only explanation is that they have both influenced each other through the time they spent together."

She could see the logic in his words,"You're probably right." She groaned slightly and said,"Man, everybody's changing, including ourseleves. It's all so confusing. Sometimes I don't know what to think."

Fishlegs nodded again and said,"I think it's what the adults like to call _growing up_."

She scoffed but didn't disagree.

Fishlegs looked at her for a couple of moments before saying seriously,"Ruffnut."

Noticing his tone, she looked at him,"What?"

After a couple of moments of silence he said,"We were all great friends when we were kids, right?"

Ruffnut didn't fully understand what he was asking. They were all still great friends, right.

After noticing her confusion he asked a question he was meaning to ask for quite some time,"Why did you and Tuffnut abandon Hiccup as a friend and start bullying and mocking him? Don't tell me it's because he messes up during the raids cause we both know that's not it."

She was taken aback by the completely unexpected question. Though when she thought about it, it _was_ a good question. She had been pretty good friends with him before she started shunning and bullying him with Snotlout and her brother? Her only explanation was that she noticed how weak he was and didn't consider him worth it. But now when she thought about it, it seemed quite a lousy reason for abandoning a good friend and becoming something quite opposite. If Astrid had suddenly, in some incredible way, lost the ability to fight, she would still be her best friend.

She decided to redirect the question, even though she knew it was a bit cowardly,"Why did _you_?"

In that moment Fishlegs looked towards the ground with a guilty expression on his face. After a moment he turned to her, the guilty look still on his face, and said,"Peer pressure."

_Ouch. _That made her cringe.

After she was quiet for a few moments, he prodded,"Well?"

She whirled towards him with an angry expression on her face,"I DON'T KNOW, OK. Maybe it was because my parents told me that I shouldn't hang out with him, saying he's a bad influence. Maybe it was because of all the nasty things the adults whispered about him when they thought we couldn't hear. Maybe it was because I found out it was enjoyable to treat him like that. Like a monster, but I didn't _mind_ because the adults not only didn't say anything, but encouraged it as well and we should _always_ listen to adults, right." she snapped.

Amazingly enough, the usually fidgety teen stood firm. When she calmed down a little, he asked,"Do you think it was worth it? To adopt the usual viking prejudices, even if it meant causing a lot of pain for a good friend. A friend that always helped us when we needed it and always gave us company when we asked for it. Was it worth all that?" he said gently but with resolve, even though he had the shameful look on his face.

She adopted the same expression and looked towards the ground just as Fishlegs had before. _Was it all worth it_?

She opened her mouth to answer,"I.."

She didn't get to finish because the horn sounded, the one that signals the arrival of one of their own ships. They looked towards the horizon and noticed a single ship coming towards Berk's docks. Both their faces showed anxiety and fear.

Only one ship out of three has returned.

* * *

Hiccup and Astrid were in the backroom of the forge with Hiccup currently drawing. They had spent the better part of the morning with Toothless. After they came back from the flight, Hiccup went into the forge to finish the daily orders of sharpening and fixing weapons while Astrid went to practice her axe throwing. When she finished training, she went to find Ruffnut. She couldn't find her anywhere and had decided to ask Tuffnut. He didn't know either, but he did grumble something and she could have sworn she heard him say _Fishlegs._

She figured she went to hang out with him and, with a sly grin on her face, decided to leave them be. She had decided to go to the forge to watch Hiccup work and strike up a bit of conversation with him. She had entered the backroom and saw dozens of drawings, diagrams, blueprints and many other things she didn't have clue about, but she couldn't disagree that it was really damn impressive.

It was then that she remembered asking Hiccup to draw a picture of them together to put in their bedroom. As soon as he had finished with his work she had asked him to draw the picture since they were already there. That is how they ended up crammed in the backroom with the skinny viking heir making precise strokes with his charcoal pencil on a piece of parchment.

"Hey! My hair does not look like that." complained Astrid.

"I'm looking at you right now and I'm saying that it does," reasoned Hiccup and with a smirk added,"and since when do you care about how pretty your hair looks like. Are we starting to get self-conscious there, Astrid."

She punched him in the shoulder and said with a glare,"I'm about as self-conscious about my looks as you are fond of Toothless licking you clean."

Hiccup grimaced while rubbing his shoulder,"Point taken."

With that, he continued with the drawing. After about a minute they heard a noise from their left and turned to look at the hulking form of Stoick The Vast in the doorway. His sudden appereance made even Astrid jump while Hiccup was trying to hide several drawings of Toothless that were on the table.

"H-hey dad, you're back. Uh.. Gobber's not here if you were looking for him." Hiccup said.

Astrid turned to look at him with unconcealed incredulity._ Did he actually just say that,_ she thought. If her father had just returned from a highly dangerous and three week long trip, she would have jumped into his arms in front of everyone, reputation be damned. She still held small hope that things between father and son weren't as bad as Hiccup made them out to be. But they were dashed when she looked at Stoick's face which held no hurt or anger because at Hiccup's words.

"No. I came looking for you two." Stoick said.

"For us?" Astrid asked.

"You two were keeping secrets, especially you, Hiccup. How long did you think you could hide this from me because I had already told you many times that _nothing _happens on Berk without me hearing about it." He said.

Both teens shared a look of unpleseant suprise. There was no way that he could have found out about Toothless. Nobody else on the island knew, and if they did they would have rallied up the villagers immediately. Vikngs weren't exactly known for their subtlety. Both teens were startled when Stoick started laughing. _What?_

"Y-Y-You're not upset?" asked Hiccup.

_"__What__!_ I was _hoping_ for this. In all honesty I had expected that you would embarass yourself in front of the village." He said. He was so elated about the news that Gobber told him that he couldn't stop saying what was on his mind or notice the teens expressions.

Astrid had the previous look of disbelief while Hiccup's was somewhat sorrowful. Did he really have such low expectations of him. Sure, he wasn't strong but Stoick is his father. Surely as a parent he should've had more trust in his son. Both teens were thinking this.

"Hahahaha! No more years of being the father to the _worst_ viking Berk has ever seen." Stoick said like he had found the buried treasure of Hamish II," I believe I have you to thank for this, Astrid. You did what I couldn't do with this awkward son of mine. You turned him from..um.. whatever he was before into a _real_ viking."

Both teens were shocked by what he said, Astrid maybe even more than Hiccup. The reason being that he somewhat expected this. _But I wasn't really _that _bad, was I_, he thought. Astrid couldn't imagine the pain he must be feeling now. Stoick had such little faith in his son that he thought that she was deserving of almost all the credit, as if Hiccup couldn't do anything on his own.

" To be honest, I was hoping but not expecting this to happen. One of the main reasons I had you two married was because if Hiccup never turned out to be good viking, I would have named _you_ heir, Astrid. Thank the Gods you're such a great viking. None of us could have done this without you." He said jovially.

This made both heads snap up and look Stoick in the eye with their wide ones. This was something they weren't expecting. Hiccup's face quickly returned to it's miserable visage. Astrid looked at him and felt utmost compassion for him. She couldn't find it in herself to give Stoick a false 'thanks' nor argue with him about his obvious lack of faith in his son.

"With you doing so well in the ring, Hiccup, we finally have something to talk about." Stoick said.

There was a short, awkward pause before Hiccup raised his head and opened his mouth to speak.

"Well, uh.. thanks dad. Me and Astrid are honoured but I think it's getting late. I should finish the work I have left and head home." said Hiccup with an obviously forced smile. His father, however, in all of his emotional inarticulacy and clumsiness, didn't notice.

"You're right. Big day tommorrow. You need plenty of rest." he said and turned to leave but noticed the drawing. He saw it was Hiccup and Astrid together. It made him smile and say one last thing before he left,"I'm really glad you two are getting along."

After he left, Astrid looked at Hiccup and his expression, which was now blank. This worried her since he was usually an open book. Even when he didn't show how he truly felt, his eyes were full of emotion and life. Now they were just..._ empty. Lifeless._

Figuring enough time has passed, she gently grabbed his upper arm and told him,"Let's go home."

He didn't offer any protest and just followed her with the same blank look on his face.

* * *

They were lying in their bed, Hiccup turned away from Astrid while she was facing his back with open eyes, reliving the days previous events in the forge, still not fully sure if they really happened. It was just too incredible. She never thought something like that could, or at least would, happen. The way the father talked about his son while the boy was right there in front of him.

But looking at Hiccup's back and remembering the look on his face before they got into bed made it all too real. The derogatory things Stoick said, Hiccup's miserable then empty look and her utter disbelief, anger and _disgust_ at the unfairness and cruelty of it all. She has been wondering how he's been taking it, but she guessed all the nasty things Snotlout, the twins and some of the other villagers said couldn't compare to the pain he was feeling now.

She decided not to wait any longer. She was a hands-on girl after all.

"Hiccup, are you okay?" she asked knowing the answer.

"I'm fine." he said emotionlessly. The tone made her heart clench.

"No you're not." she said. He made no visible reaction. He didn't move or say anything and this frustrated her,"C'mon Hiccup, you can trust me. All the things you showed and told me because you had faith in me. Why can't you do the same now? I'm not going to laugh at you or think you're weak if you open up to me."

"Then why do _you_ so _rarely_ open up to others if you think it doesn't make one weak.?!" he retorted with his back still facing her.

"I opened up to you before. In here. In the cove. I told you how I felt about myself, you and everything that is happening. How is it fair for me to do it when you insist and _you_ can't return the favour, ha? How is that supposed to make me feel?" she said with an edge of anger in her voice.

The only response she got was a light sniff and it made her visage soften. With a sympathetic look she asked him gently,"Hiccup. Please. Look at me."

There were a few moments of silence, after which he turned around and Astrid gasped lightly.

There were tears going down his face, which had a look of almost absolute misery and sorrow. Her heart clenched even more painfully this time and, without thinking, she wrapped her arms around him. He stiffened at first but relaxed after a few seconds. After a few moments of pause, a weak sob came from Hiccup and the floodgates broke. He started crying, not loud enough for his father to hear downstairs, but Astrid was right there beside him with her head on his own and her arms around his shoulders, making her hear every single sob.

"I-I always k-knew it wasn't e-eas-sy for him t-t-t-to raise such a.._sob.._weak and _different s-_son. B-But I never thought t-that I was that bad._ Sob. _I-I was just trying t-to m-make him proud. To not l-look at me with dissapointment. But d-dad is a viking. One of t-the greatest e-ever._ Sob. _I should have known that h-he would never accept me as I really am. H-He would _never_ accept a _weak and pathetic..._ _hiccup_ l-like me." Hiccup said with a shaky voice while still bawling._  
_

"You're not pathetic nor are you weak. You have strength, a lot of it. Maybe not all of it the same kind that your father has, but strength regardless. _I_ admire you for it and I'm not a girl that is easy to impress. Please Hiccup, don't let what the others, including your father, say get to you. They don't know you like I and Toothless do. The real you." Astrid said sympatheticaly.

While she would have berated and scolded him for crying if she was the same person from before their marriage, she knew that this was what Hiccup needed. She feels like she is returning the favour for when he took care of her when she poisoned herself with a Nadder's spike. She needed help and Hiccup had taken care of her, but now Hiccup's the one that needs comfort and help. She was willing to do anything to make him smile again.

The revelation struck her like Thor's hammer. Seeing Hiccup in so much pain hurt her as well and the only thing on her mind was to do everything in her power to help him. She was putting him before anything else. With those thoughts and her feelings now clear to her, she decided to act. She gently grabbed his cheeks, pulled his head up so that he was eye-level with her and gave him a soft kiss on the lips.

He stiffened at first and she was afraid of how he would react. It was something of a spur of the moment thing and didn't think things through fully. She was afraid she was going too fast and would ruin the relationship they built thus far. However, all her fears were dashed when he relaxed and kissed her back. They both felt like never before and a feeling of serene pleasure washed over them.

After they broke the kiss, Hiccup stared at her with wide eyes. Astrid could feel herself blushing, but she didn't look away. This was too important.

"Why?" asked Hiccup in a soft and disbelieving tone.

"Because.." she bit her lip and forced herself to gather the courage to tell him,"Because I lo-"

**BOOM!**

An explosion from outside cut off the rest of her sentence and both teens jumped at the sudden noise. Almost immediately after that, another sound was heard throughout the village, the sound of a horn easily recognisable to every viking on Berk. Both teens looked alarmed at one another.

"Dragon raid."


	4. Chapter 4

**I don't own 'The Choice' or HTTYD.**

* * *

Dragons were flying over the village as they burned down houses and tried to steal the sheep and cattle. Vikings were running out of their homes with their favorite weapons in hand. They engaged in combat with any dragon within their close proximity. The wooden homes were burning, smoke was in the air and roars and screams of vikings and dragons were echoing in the night.

Hiccup and Astrid opened the front door of their home and saw the horrifying scene that was a common occurence in their village.

Both had looks of alarm on their faces because of this unexpected turn of events.

Astrid looked at Hiccup,"What do we do?" she asked with a fearful edge in her voice.

Hiccup looked very unsure and stayed quiet for several moments. When he opened his mouth to speak, a large hand landed on his shoulder. Both teens jumped and turned to look at Stoick standing in the doorway.

Stoick had a stern expression,"You fight. Both of you have received training and Gobber says that you both showed great promise and skill, especially you, Hiccup. Now is the time to put it all to the test. Go out there and do your best." he said.

Both teens looked unsure. How were they supposed to do this? Neither of them could kill dragons and Hiccup would not incapacitate a dragon just so another viking could kill it.

This time Stoick noticed their expressions. He was connfused since he thought that they were looking for a chance to join in defending their home ever since they were smal children. Both of them performed exceptionally well in the ring according to the villagers who stayed behind. However, this _was _their first raid and he could understand their nervousness. With that thought in mind he entered the house, which left the teens thoroughly confused. After a minute, he came back with a helmet in his right hand.

"Hiccup, I want you to put this on." he said with a serious visage.

Hiccup was now even more confused. Sure, the horned helmets are standard viking wear but he didn't understand why giving it to him was so important.

Stoick noticed his son's confusion and said,"This helmet was made from half of your mother's breastplate."

At this, Hiccup became astonished. This hat belonged to his mother. Despite that the fact that it was half her breastplate slightly disgusted him, he couldn't help the sudden surge of emotion. This was probably the last thing that remained of his beloved mother. A lone tear escaped his eye.

Astrid was looking at him with compassion. She loved her 'aunt' Valhallarama and she also felt the surge of emotion at seeing the helmet. Stoick, again, noticed their expressions, as well as the lone tear that traveled down the face of his son. While at most other occasions he would have scolded him for it, he understood how his son felt since he felt the same way.

"Wear it proudly. These infernal beasts took your mother away from us. Now, you have the chance to avenge her, to cherish your memory of her by wearing that helmet as you slay the creatures that killed her. _Son_" he said and put his hands on his small shoulders, which made Hiccup look up at his father.

"_Make me proud._"

Hiccup just stared, baffled at his father's words. He had always wanted him to say those words to him, but now, he never felt more conflicted. On one hand he is elated that his father is putting faith in him and talking like he knew his son could make him proud. On the other, he feels great fear and dread at his words since he knew he couldn't kill any dragons. His desire to bring peace into the village was more important to him than his father's pride, even though it still mattered to him. Thus, he dreaded the outcome of the raid because Stoick will be more dissapointed and furious with him than ever.

How he got what he always wanted in the moment he really didn't made him curse his luck. It also made him almost laugh.

Irony is _such_ a bitch.

Hiccup swears the Gods are laughing at him right now. He always had great appreciation for sarcasm and irony, and now the Gods are using it to make his life so damn complicated. They must have one heck of a sense of humour.

Astrid understood how conflicted he must feel. How _are _you supposed to feel? How do you react when the thing you most wanted to happen for a long time is now the very source of most of your troubles. She put a reasurring hand on his shoulder and squeezed it a little, to let him know she was there for him.

Stoick nodded once and joined the fray.

When Hiccup still didn't perk up, Astrid decided to try a different approach.

She punched his shoulder.

"What was that about?" asked Hiccup while rubbing the shoulder.

"For sulking." she said firmly. Hiccup scowled a bit but there wasn't any real malice or rage in his eyes. Astrid continued,"Look, I know this is very hard for you but you need to be strong right now. For yourself, for me, for the dragons, for _everybody, _even if they don't know it yet. You'll get through this. I'll help you."

Hiccup looked at her serious, slightly compassionate visage and was able to find reasurrance in her words. He smiled at her. He really didn't know what he'd do without her. While she was always important to him, he _did_ spend the last several years coping without her aid. But now, if anything happened to her or if anything separated them, he truly didn't know how he would cope with that. Same goes for Toothless.

"Thanks, Astrid." he said.

Astrid smiled back,"C'mon, let's go."

He put the helmet with a small grimace at the reminder of what the helmet used to be and followed after her.

They both regretted it somewhat after they came closer to the part of the village where the fighting was more intense. Left and right, dragons and vikings were killing each other. Hiccup looked on, shocked, as a viking severed the head ofa Deadly Nadder that was trapped under a net and the blood got splattered on his face and torso as he roared in victory.

Astrid, meanwhile, had the exact same look when she saw a viking thrust a spear into a Gronckle's mouth and it came out of it's upper jaw on the other side. The viking had a maniacal, bloodthirsty grin on his face while he was doing it. She had always wanted to do that. To join the raids and kill as many dragons as possible and had imagined herself having the exact same grin on her own face as she killed dragons in various, bloody ways. But now, watching it all made her absolutely disgusted and even horrified. _Did I really want to be like that,_ she asked herself.

She understood that they needed to defend their home and not let them take their food. However, she is now certain that most people are doing it out of nothing but hatred and revenge, not out of neccessity. They made a sport out of it and it escalated to the point that Berk vikings claimed that they lived for nothing but that. That slaying dragons is all that mattered and those inacapable are not worthy being called 'vikings'. It became the centerpiece of their lifestyle and she wondered how it all went so _wrong._

They were brought back to reality by the shouts of their peers. As soon as they came close, Hiccup and Astrid noticed that they all had identical grins on their faces, except for Fishlegs.

"Our parents let us join the raids. Man, this will be AWESOME. We can finally show them what we got." said Snotlout.

"Yeah. I can't wait to spill a Nadder's gut or mount my first Gronkle head on a spear. Dad said those things were cool." said Tuffnut.

"Y-Yeah, it's pretty awesome." Hiccup said with a forced grin.

Snotlout thrw his hands in the air annd whooped,"WHOOOOO. YEAAAAAAH, LET'S GO." With that he ran, trying to find his first dragon to kill.

The others did the same thing as they joined the fray. Hiccup and Astrid cast troubled glances toward each other and joined them soon afterward. Thankfully, the dragons were paying more attention to the bigger vikings while the vikings payed more attention to the dragons that were attacking them. They were able to weave their way through the battle-filled streets for some time without engaging into combat themselves.

Unfortunately, that didn't last as a Deadly Nadder attacked Hiccup and he had no choice but to incapacitate it by scratching it under it's chin. As soon as it collapsed, the vikings nearby roared in approval and gave Hiccup expectant stares. He knew they wanted him to kill it. He was saved from doing so when Astrid was caught of guard by a Gronckle.

She was able to dodge when it tried to ram into her but it still caugh the shield she had picked up earlier and the motion caused her to fall onto the ground. As the Gronckle tried to charge again, she was saved by Hiccup who used some dragon nip he had on his person. Before the people could give them the previous expectant stares, an explosion happened near them and a Monstrous Nightmare apperead.

The dragon was attacked by the vikings in it's close proximity, which gave Hiccup and Astrid enough time to flee from the scene. Hiccup noticed that the Deadly Nadder he defeated had a deep and bloody wound on it's stomach and was undoubtedly dead.

He stared at it with wide eyes, sick to his stomach. He couldn't hold it in anymore. He ran into a space between two houses and threw up. Thankfully, the only one who saw this was his wife who was looking at him with compassion.

After he finished, he still had the mortified look on his face,"I did that. I killed that dragon." he said miserably.

"No, you didn't. Someone else did. You only brought it down to defend yourself. No matter how hard we try, Hiccup, some dragons and vikings _are_ going to be killed before peace is achieved between them." she said gently but firmly, whilst rubbing his back a bit since he was still hunched over.

"I-I-I.." he closed his eyes tightly and swallowed the lump in his throat. After a few moments he said,"You're right. I'm sorry."

She smiled and said,"It's okay." She picked up a nearby shield and her axe."Let's go."

They were able to avoid any other confrontations for most of the raid. However, ate very end of it, disaster struck.

Most dragons had left, with a small amount of sheep with them, a little less than usual. Some vikings were finishing off the dragons that remained or were trying to scare them away. One of them was Stoick, who was wrestling with a Monstrous Nightmare. Just as he was about to twist it's neck, an idea came to his mind.

"Get my son!" he ordered to Spitelout who was nearby. He complied and after a minute brought Hiccup and Astrid with him. Hiccup was confused as to why his father would summon him while fighting a dragon.

His father grinned at him and punched the Nightmare hard so that it fell in the diraction of his son. He said,"Hiccup, kill this dragon. This way, the Nightmare in the ring can be saved for another champion of dragon training. It's best not to waste such an opportunity."

Hiccup and Astrid both had shocked expressions on their faces. This wasn't supposed to happen. The plan was to avoid fighting any dragons during the raid, much less kill one.

"B-But dad, are you sure?" he stuttered.

He just smiled at him,"The whole village is watching. There are no chains sorrounding the battlefield like in the kill ring so in case things _do _go wrong, it will be easier for us to intervene. But I have faith in you. I know you can kill this blasted beast." he said with obvious pride while the rest of the vikings shouted in agreement.

Hiccup was afraid. Here, out in the open and just after a raid, so many things can go wrong. They're still affected by their bloodlust and hatred. They won't be able to think straight and the destruction the dragons just caused in the raid will make them even less willing to accept peace.

However, Hiccup also knew it was now or never. He needed to do this. If everything goes well, there will be no more unneccessary death and loss of family members or dear friends.

The Monstrous Nightmare was beginning to lose the wooziness from Stoick's punch and noticed Hiccup coming with a short sword and a viking helmet. It snarled and prepared to attack, but stopped as soon as the boy threw down his sword and helmet. While it was still weary, it was beginning to calm down.

"It's okay" Hiccup said gently."I'm not going to hurt you" and he started extending his hand.

Stoick was furious. While he didn't understand what his son was doing, all he knew was that he wasn't doing it right. He wasn't doing it _properly_; the viking way. He was supposed to grab a sword and shield and charge at it with a battle cry, not let go of his weapons _and_ the helmet and approach the dragon as if he was trying to tame it. _NO._ His son will not embarrass himself nor his father. Not anymore. His son _will _become a viking.

"Hiccup. What _are _you doing? Pick up that sword and the helmet and FIGHT!" he said with anger lacing his voice._  
_

"No. We don't need to do that. We don't have to fight them. Just let me show you." Hiccup said in a suprisingly steely tone and Astrid couldn't help but be proud of him.

Stoick was losing it. He knew what he was about to do was probably follish and would put his son in danger, but Hiccup is the heir. The future chief. While he did marry him to Astrid so she could become heir if Hiccup remains... _Hiccup_, he will do anything to escape that fate.

"Son, I'm sorry, but you will become a viking whether you WANT TO OR NOT." he bellowed and threw his axe so that it landed near the dragons head. The axe spooked it and it started attacking the first thing he identified as a threat, and with Hiccup being so close, it decided that the boy was a threat. It spewed flames at him which Hiccup was able to dodge at the last second.

"WAAAAAAHHHHH!" he screamed.

"NO! HICCUP!" Astrid yelled.

Hiccup started running with the dragon hot on his trail. Most vikings didn't try to help since this was still Hiccup's test, while those that did weren't able to since the dragon would set itself on fire.

Astrid tried to help but a firm hand on her shoulder stopped her. She looked at the angry face of Stoick The Vast, but she didn't back down. Instead she whirled on him,"Why are you just standing there? He needes help!" she yelled.

"He needs to do this. Neither I nor this village will accept a lousy excuse of a viking as heir. He _will_ finish this test." He said sternly.

She looked at him incredulously for a moment before her own face turned furious,"EVEN IF IT KILLS HIM? IS _THAT_ WHAT YOU'RE SAYING?" she yelled.

He turned away from her. She didn't understand; she was still young and naive. He knew as chief what the people needed and what was of utmost importance for their society to thrive and live to see the next day. Hiccup needs to do this for the future of Berk.

But after watching his son for a little longer. Watching him running, screaming for help, a memory surfaced. The memory of his late wife, burns over her body and her right arm gone. He saw her dying in her sleep. No. He will not lose his son to one of these beasts, test be damned. Hiccup can become a viking another day.

Astrid felt the hand on her shoulder shaking and when she was about to ask him what was wrong, Stoick started running towards his son. While she had a suprised look on her face, inside she was relieved.

However, all her hope was lost when the dragon cornered Hiccup. His father tried to help, but one of the towers fell before him and stopped him in his tracks. Astrid was now panicking. The Monstrous Nightmare was too angry and agitated to be trained and Hiccup was too terrified to even try and train it. It was clearly visible that he was going to die.

A piercing, whistle-like noise echoed through the night and Astrid immediately recognised it. So did the other vikings as they started ducking and putting their shields above their heads for protection.

"NIGHT FURY. GET DOWN."

But the blast never hit them. Instead, it hit the dragon that had cornered Hiccup. It flew about a dozen feet to the side, and just as it was about to get up, a black mass collided with it and pinned it to the ground with it's paws on it's neck.

Toothless was staring at the Nightmare with pure fury in his toxic, green eyes. He started gathering gas in his neck for the finishing blow.

"NO."

The Night Fury swallowed the blast before he could fire it and turned to look at his rider in confusion. The dragon that was pinned under him just tried to kill him and Hiccup wanted to spare it.

Hiccup was breathing heavily. He looked int his dragon's eyes with determination mixed with with pleading and said,"Just let it go."

Toothless hesitated, but turned to look at the dragon under him. After a few moments he roared at it and let it go, the whole situation being reminiscent of his and Hiccup's first encounter. The Monstrous Nightmare whimpered and flew away.

Shouts of panic and rage caused them both to remind them of the vikings still present, including Stoick who was looking at the Night Fury with hatred. As the vikings grabbed their weapons and went for the kill, Hiccup stepped in front his dragon with his arms in front of him and yelled,"No, stop. He's not going to hurt you. Please!"

Miraculously, they stopped and looked at him in suprise and outrage. Stoick took a step forward and yelled,"HICCUP, what are you doing with that dragon. Get over here!"

He looked at his father in defiance,"No. You're not going to hurt him." he said.

"Hiccup, what in Thor's name are you saying?" Stoick asked.

"I won't let you hurt my friend." said Hiccup.

At that, the people started yelling in outrage, yelling things like 'sacrilege' and 'traitor'.

Hiccup swallowed and tried to look as confident as possible,"I tried to show you all with the Monstrous Nightmare that we don't have to fight them. We can train them, befriend them and fight _with _them, not against them."

The vikings shouts became even louder than before and they started walking towards them. They stopped when their chief spread his arms in a motion that meant stop. He looked at his son with rage and betrayal in his eyes.

"Hiccup. These things are nothing more than murderous and vile beasts that only know how to steal and kill. They've killed hundreds of us. One of them just tried to kill you." he said.

"This dragon just saved and protected me from the Nightmare and the only reason it tried to kill me was because _you _interfered. Besides, we have killed thousands of them. We make a sport out of it." Hiccup retorted.

"We do it to protect ourselves and for survival. That was always the reason." Stoick said.

"It _was _at first. Now most people do it out of hatred, revenge and glory. They only do it to satisfy their own needs, not the needs of the village." his son said.

At this Stoick was absolutely _fuming_,"HOW DARE YOU? YOU'VE NEVER BEEN NOTHING BUT A NUISANCE WHO COULDN'T FIGHT AND PROTECT THE VILLAGE LIKE THE REST. HOW CAN YOU POSSIBLY UNDERSTAND?"

Hiccup flinched. at both the unexpected tone and the words. He hung his head. They hurt. They hurt a lot. Something broke inside of him, but instead of the expected sorrow, pure anger welled up inside him. He raised his head and Stoick saw hot, white fury in his son's eyes and he couldn't help the somewhat bewildered expression that appread on his face. He never saw his mild-mannered son look like this.

"The better question _is_ what do _you _understand. You barely tried to understand me, you don't pay almost any attention to me and you NEVER listen to me. I might not have followed through with many of your orders, but I always listened to what you had to say. You didn't pay _any_ attention whatsoever to what _I_ would say." he yelled.

Stoick was left stunned for a short while before he adopted a somewhat guilty look on his face. His son was right. He always dismissed everything Hiccup would say as one of his unimportant, bothersome 'hiccup things'. He quickly regained his composure. Now was not the time for that. He had more important things to do.

"You always failed as a viking. You could never measure up to expectations. You always had to be so different." he said.

"My entire life I had tried to conform to viking norms. My entire life I tried to make you proud. I know it was difficult for you to have such a different son, but you rarely ever tried to accept and understand me the way I am and when you did, you didn't try nearly hard enough and you gave up too easy!" Hiccup retorted.

"We are _vikings_. We only accept vikings. Everything else is a weakness and a flaw, nothing that is worthy of aknowledgment. At least your mother learned that lesson." said the chief.

Hiccup was exceedingly suprised by this. What did his father mean? His mother was a strong viking who participated in the raids and killed a fair number of dragons.

"W-W-What do you mean?" he stuttered.

Stoick was quiet for a few moments while looking at Hiccup seriously. Whenthose tense moments passed, he opened his mouth to speak,"She was different. She didn't like fighting nor killing. I still loved her but I'd be lying if I said she didn't get on my nerves often with her talks of peace between vikings and dragons."

Hiccup was left utterly perplexed. His mother tried to do the same thing he was trying to do now. However, his father said that she 'learned her lesson', meaning something had changed that.

"I never told you how you acquired that scar on your chin. It happened on the same night your mother finally stopped with her damn shenanigans." Stoick continued.

Hiccup was throughly interested now. He had always wondered how he got it, but Stoick never told him. He had asked but his father always said he'd tell him when the time was right.

"It was a raid. A dragon had broken into our home. I remember it clearly. It was one of the largest I had ever seen. It had four wings and a flat face with many coral-like horns on top of it's head. Your mother got there first and she saw the dragon attecking you. You were still only a babe in the crib and the dragon tried to make you it's meal. Your mother defended you by distracting it while I took you to safety. She wa able to scare it off and we never saw that dragon again. It was able to leave a mark on you however. The scar." he said.

Hiccup was wide-eyed as he took this all in. A dragon had nearly killed him while he was a baby and his mother protected him. It must have thought him as a meal to bring to the queen. The strange thing is that his father said that the dragon was never seen again, which is weird since it must have been one of the queen's minions.

"She finally understood that peace between us and these infernal beasts is unachiveable since one had just tried to make a wee baby of several months dinner. She finally stopped with her foolishness and joined the ranks as a dragon killer, a defender of our home and a _true viking._" Stoick finished.

* * *

**How do you like it?**

**I will immediately inform you all that Astrid and Hiccup_ wiil_ be separated until Hiccup comes back. I'm sorry but It has to be that way.**

**I know Stoick seems evil in this chapter, but you have to look at things from his point of view. He was a perfect viking and was taught that dragons are mindless beasts ever since he could walk. He was also taught that difference was a weakness and him being the very epitome of a viking, fully believed this. He lost his father, grandfather and wife to them and has for many years watched his home being destroyed and people being killed by them. It doesn't justify his stubborness, narrow-mindedness and insesitivity but it makes it more understandable.**

**Story recommendations.**

**Hurtful Words by Warorpeace:**

**Hiccup still feels pain from his past mistreatment and Stoick and Astrid worry he might runaway because of this. This is a great story and a great author that deserve more credit. He(she?) is the one who gave me the push in writing this story so I'm really grateful to the author for it.**

**How To Let It Go by Warorpeace:**

**HTTYD and Frozen crossover. Hiccup escapes with two Furies and finds himself in the kingdom of Arendelle. Hiccup and Elsa are 15 at the beginning.**

**The Gift That Bonds Us by NinjaRiderWriter:**

**Valka returns to Berk at the time Hiccup caught Toothless and she learns that he has taken after her and is no true viking. **


	5. Chapter 5

**I'm sorry, this is not a chapter.**

**I'm imforming you, my readers, that I'll be changing the title of the story from 'Wishes And Necessities' to 'Taking Measures'. Frankly, 'Wishes And Necessities' sounded too much like a title for a family /drama/teenage romance fic. This story will have romance but it will also very, very much concetrate on other things.**

**I believe it is a good decision and I hope you agree with it.**


	6. Chapter 6

**Here is the fifth chapter. Neither HTTYD nor 'The Choice' belong to me.**

* * *

A true viking. That's what Hiccup always wanted to be. Not because he liked what true vikings did, but simply because _then_ he would have been normal in the eyes of the villagers. He would have been accepted.

But now he realizes that the method doesn't usually justify the result. Killing without an ounce of remorse, fighting without even giving peace a single thought and taking enjoyment in all of it and letting your anger and pride blind you; it isn't the type of person Hiccup wants to be.

"If that's what it takes to be a true viking, then you might as well count me out." he said firmly.

Stoick was angry. He was confused. He was both. These beasts murdered his wife and Hiccup's mother, not to mention hundreds of other vikings. They have raided their home for 300 years and Hiccup had always been eager to be a real viking warrior. What changed?

One side wanted to just disown him and get over with this foolishness. As a bonus, there wouldn't be anymore accidents during the raids and he could get rid of the thorn in his eye that is his son. He shook his head internally. These were the kind of thoughts that created the rift that exists between them. No. He can give his son one more chance.

After taking a deep breath, he said,"Son, I will give you one more chance to redeem yourself and become a viking. Just kill that dragon and stop with this blapshemic tomfoolery. We can avenge your mother... together." and he held out his right hand, wanting Hiccup to grab it and come over.

Hiccup looked at his father's hand and seemed to be thinking it over. In reality, there wasn't anything to think about. He already made his choice and he knew what his choice would entail. His only regret was that he and Astrid would be separated when things were going so well between them. Heck, she _kissed him on the mouth._ He looked at her and he knew she knew what he was about to do and what the consequences will be. He could see the sad glint in her eyes.

He swallowed the lump in his throat and said,"I'm sorry... Stoick."

For a moment, Stoick looked crestfallen, but it was quickly replaced by a look of a strong and stern chief with a slight hint of betrayal,"Then I have no choice. Hiccup, from this day forward, you are officially banished from the island. You are no longer a viking of Berk and" he gulped lightly, "you are no longer my son. Leave."

The statement caused an uproar among the vikings and they shouted things like 'execute him', 'traitor' and 'blood eagle'.

"SIIIIILEEEENCE!" their chief roared.

"I have made my decision and that is THAT!" he said firmly.

"Bah, you're only letting him go because he's your son. We should kill him and have that Night Fury for supper." Mildew said.

Stoick turned to look at him with the most frightening glare that he ever gave anyone. It made Mildew back away immediately with a small whimper.

"I have made my decision. Is anyone else willing to contradict me." he said.

Everyone was more prudent this time and they stayed silent. Stoick gave them a nod and he turned back to look at his son.

"_Leave_"

Hiccup just nodded and climbed onto Toothless and, after sparing the villagers one last look, took off in the direction of the cove.

Stoick watched his only son and the last member of his family leave. It hurt him deeply to do this, but he is a chief first and must do what's best for his people. He looked down at Astrid and saw she had a frown on her face and a tight grip on her axe. That hand was shaking in, what Stoick thought, was anger.

"Did you know about this?" he asked her.

She knew she had to pretend to be clueless and angry. Therefore, she put a scowl on her face, looked up at him and ominously said,"No, I didn't."

Stoick was somewhat doubtful, but he quickly shook it off. She was too much like him to betray the tribe. Her father lost the ability to walk because of the dragons and she had trained herself for years to gain the skills to avenge him. He payed a lot of attention to her, probably even more than to his own son. She was the offspring that he always wished to have. The offspring he could understand and relate to. There was no way she would betray the tribe.

He just nodded and started walking towards his home while Astrid sprinted towards the woods.

* * *

Even though he expected this to happen, it was still a bitter pill to swallow. He still felt somewhat dead on the inside and a part of him wanted to cry and scream. He shook his head and slightly scolded himself for it. This was expected, he made the right decision and he cried enough for one night.

After a minute he landed in the cove and slowly climbed off of Toothless. With a groan he put his head in his hands and said,"Oh man. How the hell did things go so wrong?"

Toothless looked at him sympatheticaly and lied down behind him. Hiccup almost automatically sat down and leaned on him. He let out a deep sigh and patted him on the head,"Thanks, bud. At least I still have you."

The dragon trilled happily and looked up into the sky. His rider saw that and understood immediately what he was thinking. He said,"There's still a few more hours til the sun rises. We'll get some sleep and leave in the morning." Thankfully, he was smart enough to pack the necessary provisions before the day his father came back, in case things went wrong, _which_ they did. The provisions were in the cove.

Toothless agreed, put his head on the ground and tried to get some sleep, which he was unable to do because of the rustling of the bushes that was heard a couple of minutes later. He instantly growled and crouched down in an attack position while Hiccup got up and looked towards the bushes with fearful eyes.

Their fears were dashed when Astrid came out of them.

She headed towards him and yelled,"Hiccup!"

Hiccup was somewhat unsure when he saw she wasn't going to stop and tentatively opened his arms. He was glad that he read her actions right when she jumped into them and hugged him so tightly, he almost couldn't breathe. He hugged her back almost as tightly and they buried their faces in each other's neck.

After several silent moments, she said,"Hiccup, are you alright?"

Hiccup nodded against her neck,"Yeah. I'm fine."

Astrid finally pulled back and looked at him with all the sympathy she could muster. "Are you sure?" she asked.

He put on a sad smile and said,"Y-Yeah. I really am." he sighed,"I was sort of expecting this to happen. It wasn't really that big of a suprise. I know I made the right choice." He looked at her sadly,"I'm sorry. I failed. I'm gonna have to leave in the morning."

Astrid just looked at him just as sadly and nodded. Unexpectedly, she jumped into his arms again and embraced him. He stiffend for a moment, but relaxed just as quickly and put his arms around her. After a few moments he guided her towards where Toothless was lying and they sat themselves down and leaned against the dragon while he was still holding her. He looked at her and saw that her eyes were glassy. He didn't know how to comfort her. The fact that he was still embracing her like that was amazing enough to him.

In the end, he sighed and said,"I promise I won't stop. I promise I'll bring vikings and dragons together and find a way to get back here."

"You better. I really don't feel like marrying anyone else." she said playfully, although the smile on her face was visibly forced.

Hiccup looked at her thoughtfully and looked away after a moment. She noticed his expression and it worried her. She decided to ask,"What are you thinking about?"

He faced her again and after gulping, he said,"Banishment entails severing all the connections the banished one had with his or her previous tribe. All agreements and arragments become null and void."

She looked at him confusedly before she connected the dots. Her eyes widened and she found it slightly harder to breathe.

She looked at him with a mix of sadness and suprise,"Y-You don't mean..." she gulped, but her expression became more determined and firm,"Still, when you come back, we could just get married again." she said.

"When you married me, you officially became a member of the Haddock clan. According to law, if the marriage is ended with the husband's banishment, the wife remains a member of her husband's clan. My point is, my dad is not like yours. He always acts like a chief, even with me. _Always._ He'll probably marry you off for the good of the tribe. The Haddock family needs an heir and my dad could change the law so that your husband joins the Haddock clan instead of you joining your husband's." Hiccup said.

Astrid's eyes widened and her face went pale. She could see the sense in his words and he was probably right. Stoick cares more about being chief than being a father and he is fully willing to use his children for political and social benefit. He doesn't enjoy it or like it, but he won't hesitate to do it.

She gulped,"After you come back, I could just divorce him and then we could get married again." she said hopefully.

He brightened a little at her words, but his face acquired a serious visage. Astrid was worried all over again. _What now_, she thought.

"Do you really want to do that? I mean, this way, you could marry someone you really want. You wouldn't have to stay married to all of... _this._ To me." he said with misery tainting his voice.

She looked at him completely flabbergasted before her face turned angry. She punched his chest rather hard and he released a painful yelp and coughed slightly.

"Why did you do that?" he asked while holding his chest with one of his hands.

"FOR BEING STUPID!" she yelled and he flinched,"I WANT... _THIS_. I want all of it. I _want_ to be married to you and I _want_ to spend the rest of my life with you. It's because I.." she stopped and looked at his stunned face and saucer-wide eyes. She smiled and put her mouth next to his ear.

"Because I love you."

His eyes widened even more if that was possible. "A-Astrid, I.." he gulped and finally said,"I love you too."

Even with her confession, he didn't expect her crashing her mouth against his.

Nevertheless, he kissed her back quickly, even though he still couldn't believe it. He was kissing Astrid and it felt amazing, even better than flying. They were able to get a rhythm that they're both comfortable with and enjoyed the sensation of their mouths moving against each other. It was Hiccup who was bold enough to begin french kissing, but Astrid didn't mind. She didn't mind _at all._

A good amount of time later, they finally separated and stared in each other's eyes. A few moments later, Astrid gave him one last kiss and snuggled into him. All the work they did today finally caught up to them and they both felt a wave of great exhaustion overcome them and both of them yawned.

"Goodnight, Hiccup" Astrid said.

"Goodnight, Astrid" Hiccup said.

With that all three of them fell into a deep sleep. None of them heard the sound of bushes rustling and feet stomping away from them.

* * *

The sun rose and cast it's radiant rays of sunlight on to the cove. All three of them stirred and started waking up, slowly opening their eyes. Hiccup was the first one and he was greeted with the beautiful sight of the cove, bathed in the morning. He smiled at the scene. He comes here so often that he forgets just how beautifuly serene the place is.

He felt something stir in his arms and saw Astrid with her eyes still closed, but he knew she was waking up. He vividly remembers the previous night when they confessed their love for one another and had their first make-out session. It was still oh-so un-freakin'-believable to him, Astrid saying 'I love you' to him, but he knows it's real and he has never been happier.

Unfortunately, he also remembers what happened before that. He got banished and he had to leave. It was so bittersweet. They were going to be separated just when they expressed their feelings. Like the ending of some sappy romance novel.

He kissed the top of her head and that's when she finally opened her eyes. She turned to look up at him with a loving gaze. She felt like she needed to say something, but instead, she kissed him gently. This time, Hiccup wasn't suprised and responded immediately. They stayed like that for a little while before they separated their lips.

"Good morning to you too." Hiccup said with a smile.

She chuckled lightly and looked towards the rising. Like Hiccup, she also noticed the undoubtable beauty of their current sorroundings. It also reminded her it was morning and that Hiccup had to leave. The thought put a sad frown on her face. This was all so unfair.

Hiccup noticed the change and understood her completely. He had the same thoughts just a few minutes ago.

They were brought back to reality by the movement of the big, black mass they were leaning against. Toothless looked at them with his big, green eyes and trilled happily.

"Good morning to you as well, bud." Hiccup said.

Astrid just put her head on Toothless's and hugged his neck. Toothless warbled contentedly and, after she let him go, looked to the sky then back to them and then to the sky again.

The reminder spoiled Hiccup's and Astrid's mood all over again.

"I know.." he gulped and continued,"I know."

Toothless nodded and rose to his feet. The teens did the same and Hiccup went to one of the corners in the cove where he left the bag full of suplies. When he came back, he and his now ex-wife just looked at each other sadly, both of them waiting for the other to say something. They both wanted to avoid it for as long as the could since the next words are going to be 'goodbye'.

Hiccup opened his mouth to speak, but was interrupted by the rustling of the bushes. Hiccup stiffened immediately while Astrid grabbed her axe and Toothless growled and bared his teeth.

Out of the bushes came Fishlegs and Ruffnut.

The four teens looked at each other while Toohless was still growling. Astrid at first thought that they were going to rat them out but she noticed their expressions weren't one's of betrayal but one's of, she had to be seeing things, sadness and sympathy. Astrid put her hand in front of Toothless's snout.

He looked at her with confusion in his eyes. She just said,"They're friends."

The Night Fury calmed down, but he was still weary.

Astrid stared at Ruffnut, silently asking her best friend what she was doing here. However, it was Fishlegs who stepped forward. Toothless growled slightly but Hiccup told him to stop. When Fishlegs came close to Hiccup, he waited a few moments before speaking,"We may not have been close for the last several years, but I know you enough to know that you wouldn't do anything to intentionally harm the village or anyone. I know you enough to know that you're only trying to help and make life better for us, even if you didn't succeed before." he paused for a moment,"I trust you. So does Ruffnut."

Ruffnut nodded and Hiccup nodded back and said,"Thank you Fishlegs. But why are you here then?"

Fishlegs expression turned somber,"To say goodbye... and to apologize."

Hiccup and Astrid raised an eyebrow at that. Fishlegs sighed and said,"I know I don't have the right to say goodbye to you and wish you luck as if we were best pals, cause we are not... and it's my fault. I wasn't a good friend to you. I was too selfish to be one. In fact, I was always thankful that you were weirder than me because then _you _were picked on and not me. But that was shallow, petty and selfish of me and I willingly abandoned one of my best friends. I'm really sorry Hiccup."

Hiccup was stunned. He always knew that Fishlegs sympathyzed but he never showed it and he never hung out with him, prefering to hang out with Snotlout and the twins so not to get bullied. While most of the time he understood, at other times Hiccup was slightly resentful towards him He didn't hate him or dislike him, but he was somewhat mad at him.

He sighed and said,"Thank you. I can't say I'm not a little angry at you for all of it or that I can _fully_ forgive you right now, but I can understand. Besides, I know you're going to keep Astrid's knowledge of me and Toothless a secret so I guess you can say you mostly redeemed yourself. Thanks."

Fishlegs smiled and stepped back and Ruffnut took his place.

She fidgeted a little and didn't look at him when she began speaking,"I'm not really the type to say sorry or talk about emotional, mushy stuf, but I have to be honest now. I'm sorry too. I really am. I abandoned you too, but I also mocked you and said so many nasty things to you. If Fishlegs is a bit of a bad person for what he did, then I'm an absolutely horrible one." she looked at him with serious determination,"I'm sorry."

Initially, Hiccup was slightly doubtful. Hey, she herself said she isn't the type to say such things. However, he could hear the earnestness in her voice and the situation was such that she couldn't possibly be lying. He gave her a small smile,"I'll forgive you, _if_ you keep all of this a secret and help Astrid whenever you can. It's most likely that Stoick will-"

Ruffnut waved her hands in front of her,"We know. We know. We heard you say it last night."

Said teens looked at her and Fishlegs in suprise. "How?" Astrid asked.

Fishlegs piped in,"We follwed you last night."

Ruffnut turned back to look at Hiccup, with a small smirk"I promise... under one condition."_  
_

He just raised an eyebrow. This wasn't exactly the time to make demands or set conditions. This was way too important for that.

Her smirk grew bigger and she pointed at him,"_You _have to bring me my own dragon to ride."

Hiccup was suprised at first but put an equally big smirk on his face a moment later,"Alright. Fair enough." he turned to look at Fishlegs,"Do you want one too?"

Fishlegs thought about it. He had always been interested in dragons and prefered to study them than to kill them. Having one as a companion would help him almost exponentionally in discovering all their secrets. But flying sounds terrifying and dragons are still powerful and dangerous creatures.

He finally decided,"Yeah. That would be cool."

Hiccup smiled at him and attached the bag to Toothless's saddle. When he turned back to them, he focused his attention on Astrid. He saw the sadness in her eyes and knew this would be equally difficult for both of them.

"I'll be back. Probably." he said to her.

She nodded,"And I'll be here. Maybe."

This time, Hiccup initiated the kiss. She responded in kind and they stayed like that until Ruffnut practically shouted,"C'mon. I have to kiss him goodbye too, you know."

Astrid glared at her and punched her in the shoulder, but didn't say anything. Ruffnut did the same to Hiccup, but she also hugged him afterwards,"Try and stay safe. We all know you don't have much luck with that." she said.

Hiccup laughed a little and turned towards Fishlegs who hugged him so suddenly he almost didn't register it.

"I'll miss you" Fishlegs said.

"I'll miss you too." Hiccup said in a raspy voice since Fishlegs was still cutting off his air supply.

He stumbled a little when his bulky friend finally released him and went over to Toothless. He climbed onto the saddle while Astrid said her goodbye's to the dragon.

She hugged his head,"I'll miss you too." she looked up at her ex-husband,"Both of you."

Hiccup nodded and gave Toothless the signal to take off. He spread his large wings and flapped them with enough force to make them hover. Before they flew off, he turned towrds her and said one last thing.

"I'll miss you most of all."

The teens that were on the ground looked at the black dot that was getting smaller and smaller. After a minute, Rufnutt looked towards her best friend, who was still looking towards the sky, even though the boy and the dragon were no longer visible. Just when she was about to aske her if everything was alright, she heard a sob. She gently turned Astrid to face her and became wide-eyed at what she saw.

There were tears streaming down her face, which had a look of utmost sorrow.

Finally, Astrid let it all out and started visibly _and_ audibly crying. Sobs wracked her body and Ruffnut embraced her. This wasn't something she would usually do. This wasn't something in which she had any experience. However, she knew this was what Astrid needed and just tightened her arms around her as she continued crying for the banished boy she loved.

* * *

**This chapter took me a good deal to write, so I hope you enjoy it.**

**Story recommendations.**

**Dragonheart by SkyjumperCloudskipper:**

**Three years after Hiccup left Berk, he comes back with his mother and a small host of dragon riders in order to help the vikings in their fight against Drago.**

**The Boy Behind The Mask by IAmTheBrovahkiin:**

**Hiccup fakes his own death and leaves Berk with Toothless. On his way ,he runs into a tribe called the Free Folk where he introduces himself as Fjalar. HiccupXOC. **


	7. Chapter 7

**Here is the sixth chapter. Enjoy.**

* * *

After ten minutes of crying, Astrid calmed down and her sobs turned to sniffles. Ruffnut was still holding her, doing everything she could to comfort her and Fishlegs was just looking at them with sadness and sympathy. After a minute, Astrid stood up and said,"We should probably get back to the village."

The other two teens nodded and they all started heading towards the entrance of the cove. However, Ruffnut noticed that Astrid's face and eyes were red from crying and it was easily noticeable. To avoid the people in the village from asking, she advised Astrid,"You should probably wash your face in the lake. Your eyes and face are red, people will notice."

Astrid nodded and went to the lake to wash her face. While splashing her face, her thoughts roamed towards her beloved ex-husband. Was he going to be alright out there in the great unknown, even with Toothless? Will he be able to cope with everything that's happened because the Gods know she had a lousy start? Will he meet other friends? New people? New dragons? Maybe he'll find another.. w-woman. Was he going to die out there without her ever knowing? She pictured herself waiting on Berk as years passed and him never coming because she didn't know that death has taken him.

The thoughts almost made her cry all over again, but she reigned it in. She did enough of it already and she needed to have faith that Hiccup will not die, that he will come back and that he _will_ be faithful.

After washing her face, she trecked towards the entrance of the cove where Ruffnut and Fishlegs were waiting. Her face was now better and while it was still a bit noticeable that she bawled, all traces would probably be gone by the time they make it to the village.

After half an hour of walking, they made it back to the village and, as predicted, all visible signs of Astrid crying were gone. The people looked at her with sympathy in their eyes, while muttering like ' poor Astrid' and 'she deserves so much better'. The whispers of one viking in particular, almost made her lunge at him.

"I knew that boy was no good. He always was. So different, so weak and so _useless._ He was a bad omen and a curse. Of course he would join the dragons. He didn't betray us because he was _never_ one of us. That's why I encouraged my son, Dogsbreath, and his friends to bully him all the time, even beat him up sometimes. I remember the first time I told him to do that. The runt ended in the healer's home nearly unconcious. It might have been a little too far but I congratulated my son anyways. _Now _I know it wasn't enough."

Astrid wanted to maim him so badly, but Fishlegs, who overheard what Dogsbreath's father said, grabbed her upper arm to stop her. She turned to look at him with a look that was a mix of rage and slight desbelief.

"I understand what you want to do, but if you defend Hiccup now, the villagers are going to find out you were working with him. All the progress made so far would have been for nothing." he said.

She kept the scowl on her face but it losed a great deal of it's previous maliciousness. She tore her arm from his grip.

"No progress was made." she said bitterly.

She quickened her pace and Fishlegs went to follow her, but was stopped by an hand on his upper arm now. He turned to look at Ruffnut, who looked at him with determination and understanding,"Leave her be for now. She needs to think and after she gets her things together, we'll be there for her." she said.

He just stared at her for a moment, which made her blush a little, and nodded.

Astrid was walking towards her parents house. She had initially thought of going to the Haddock household, but in the end felt that she didn't want to talk to Stoick at the moment, so she changed destination. She didn't want her parents to think that Hiccup was a no-good traitor and decided to let them in on what they were doing.

She knocked on the door and after a few moments, Adrianna opened the door. She immediately hugged her daughter and ushered her inside, where the rest of the family was waiting for her.

"Oh Astrid, I'm so sorry." her mother said.

"It's okay mom. I'm alright." she said.

"Are you sure, sweetheart?" her father said.

Astrid just nodded and took a seat. She cntemplated on how to break it to her family that she was with Hiccup on it the entire time. Before she could speak, her brothers started speaking.

"Don't worry, sis. You don't need that dragon-sympathyzing traitor." Adam said.

"Yeah. If he ever comes back, we'll kick his ass hard." Almarr backed his brother up.

"_Boys. Language._" Their mother admonished them. The boys shrunk back a bit, but their eyes still held a look of determination and slight defiance.

Even though they offended her beloved, Astrid couldn't help but smile at their eagerness to help and protect her.

"Thanks, boys, but you won't need to do that. That's what I came to talk about." she said seriously.

Her parents exchanged somewhat uneasy and curious glances before they motioned for her to speak.

She took a deep breath and said,"I knew all along about the Night Fury and Hiccup."

Her brothers looked absolutely astonished while her parents had similar expressions.

She gulped before continuing,"He showed him to me one day and took me flying on it. He wanted to show me that we didn't have to fight them and that we could live with them. He wanted to show me that peace was possible... and he was right."

"WHAT?!" yelled her brothers. Her parents didn't look as astonished as before and their expressions were now more curious than suprised. Good. It meant that her parents might understand.

Adam regained a bit of his composure,"Sis, those _things_ are the reason dad can't walk anymore. They killed hundreds of us, stole our food and burned down our homes. How can you say that peace is possible?" Almarr just nodded in agreement.

"I thought so too, but we found out why the dragons are raiding us." everybody gasped at that,"It all made sense. There's something on their island. It's a dragon like no other. It's almost half the size of Berk and it controls the other dragons. If the smaller dragons don't bring enough food... the queen eats them instead." she said.

Her family had a look of horror and desbelief on their faces. She could see that she was starting to get through to them. She _needed _them to understand. Without Hiccup, they are the only family she has.

"Please, trust me. I'm telling the truth. I saw the thing with my own eyes. If we somehow destroy that dragon, peace _is _possible. We have put our pride and history aside and trust Hiccup to bring peace. Mom, dad, you know he would never intentionally hurt anyone, much less destroy an entire village full of people. He is kind and generous and all he wants to do is stop all of this fighting and prevent the same thing that happened to his mother and to you, dad." she practically begged.

Her father looked at her with an emotionless gaze before he came closer to her. He put out his hand and Astrid immediately recognised the gesture. She put her own hand in his larger one and looked at him with a mix of determination and desperation.

After staring at her blankly for a few moments, he finally smiled,"I've raised you since you were a wee babe. I know more things about you than you yourself know and so does your mother. We both can tell that you're not lying, we both know how much you love this village and we both know that your husband is the same." he said and after a small pause, he finished with,"We believe you."

Astrid got a huge smile on her face and jumped into her father's arms, which pushed the wheelbarrow back a little. Her mother smiled as well and soon joined them. The boys, however, were still unsure and were somewhat doubtful of their sister's mental health.

Astrid noticed and looked at them with a gentle smile,"I know this is a lot to take in, but you have t believe me. No more pointless deaths and burned down houses. It's the only way."

Her brothers fidgeted a little and Adam spoke up,"Maybe, but it still all sounds so... _incredible_. I-I.. I don't know what to think."

Astrid was thoughtful before something between a smile and a smirk crossed her face,"If you agree, you'll get to _ride dragons._ You'll get to _fly_ and see everything from a dragon's perspective. You'll have a giant fire-breathing reptile as a close friend. You'll be able to do so many things that were before impossible."

Both of them were wide-eyed as they thought it through. Not long after that, huge smiles broke out,"You _mean_ we'll really get to fly." Almarr said.

She just nodded, after which her brothers jumped into her arms. Their parents rejoined in the family hug and Astrid knew she was not alone.

* * *

Later that day, she finally trudged back to the Haddock household. When she opened the door, she saw Stoick sitting in his chair, looking at the fire on the stove. He had a blank expression, but she could notice the small amount of sadnees in them. He might be a lousy parent, but it wasn't easy for any parent to lose their child.

When he heard the door closing, he looked up and saw his daughter-in-law in near the entrance of his home, staring at him. There was a somewhat uncomfortable silence for a few moments before Stoick spoke up,"Where were you last night?"

"I went into the woods to ... take out some of my frustrations on trees with my axe. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to leave you alone after what happened with that trai-... _him._" she said with as much false venom as she could when she mentioned Hiccup.

Stoick just nodded and went back to look at the fire. Astrid looked at him, contemplating if it was a good time to ask him something that she and her parents just a few minutes ago. He just lost his son and she didn't feel like being the victim of Stoick's wrath and frusrations. After about a minute of waiting, she finally gathered enough courage to ask him.

"Sir, I want to ask you something." she said. Stoick just nodded. She gulped and said."I know your son betraying us was hard for you and I don't want to leave you at such a difficult time, but I'd like to move back to my parent's house."

Stoick, suprisingly enough, didn't look suprised, but he did look at her with curiosity evident in his eyes,"Why do you want to do that?"

She gulped again before saying,"Me and Hiccup had gotten along well these last few days and I started liking him somewhat more than a friend. We slept together in the same bed, shared the same room and lived in the same home. I don't think I can sleep in that same place after this." she looked at him with compassion,"I promise I'll visit almost every day. I'm still your daughter-in-law and the _whole _ village is behind you. You're not alone, sir."

He was thoughtful for a few moments before he relented,"Permission granted."

"Thank you." she said and before she went upstairs, her insticts told her to say a few more words to him,"I'm sorry about everything that's happened. I was with him during most of the day; I should have noticed."

Stoick almost immediately raised his hand,"Don't blame yourself. If anything, I might be the one at fault here."

Her head snapped up to look at him in bewilderment. Did he really just say that?

He noticed her confusion and elaborated,"I left him to fend for himself for almost all of his life afer Val died. I knew how the villagers and his peers, no offense, treated him... and I didn't do anything about it. I knew he must have been terribly lonely but I put my own comfort and pride before the emotional well-being of my own son. Fights and arguements between teens and pre-teens happen all the time and the parents always stick by their children and back them up. All those times Snoutlout, the Thorston twins or Dogsbreath and his gang made Hiccup a victim of their bullying, I never did anything. I was a horrible father and I knew it and I _still_ didn't do anything about it."

She looked at him in a new light _and respect._ While he was still a rather lousy parent, in her eyes, he wasn't as lousy as before.

"Val once told me, and I quote, 'Total loneliness is one of the worst things that can happen to someone. It's so horrible that aknowledgement from someone evil is preferable to it.'" he said in a sorrowful tone.

She just stares at him before adding her own confession,"She was certainly one of the wisest people I ever met and if that's the reason things turned out the way they did, then it was my fault as well. I used to be Hiccup's best friend and I knew almost everything about him. However, when the dragons took my dad's abilty to walk, I abandoned him and started scorning him. I never bullied him or anything of the sort, but I let him know that, in my opinion, he wasn't welcome. This is probably as much as my fault as it is yours."

She swallowed the lump in her throat before she finished,"He might have gone against everything that it meant to be a viking and betrayed us, but I don't hate him. I can't really find it within myself to do so."

Stoick nodded and before she could get her things from the upstairs bedroom, he told her,"Astrid, there is something you need to do."

She stopped and felt a sense of foreboding,"I'm listening."

"You're gonna have to kill the Monstrous Nightmare in the ring." he said.

Her sense of foreboding was justified as the horror of his words struck her. No. This wasn't supposed to happen. She was supposed to avoid killing any dragons. She couldn't have Hiccup coming back to her when her hands were stained with dragon blood.

"Really?" she said with a small amount of false enthusiasm.

"Aye. Even though most of the villagers believe you weren't in on what Hiccup was doing, there are some who do. You killing that dragon will prove these rumours wrong. Besisdes, there still needs to be a champion of dragon training." he said with finality in his voice.

She just nodded and said,"I'll make you and the villagers proud, sir.", although, on the inside, she was panicking.

That night, she wasn't able to fall asleep. She just kept thinking about the kill ring, the dragon she was supposed to kill and her exiled, but beloved ex-husband who promised to come back to her. The knot in her gut kept her awake the entire night.

How would she ever be able to face Hiccup if she goes through with it?!

* * *

**Story recommandations.**

**Pride by Edibna:**

**Stoick is the one who went looking for Hiccup when he won dragon training. Instead of feeling shame and dissapointment in him for befriending a dragon, unexpected pride is the emotion that comes forth.**

**Running Scared by StorSpeaker:**

**Hiccup is framed for peeking at Astrid and Ruffnut while they were bathing and he runs away when the villagers start hating him for it.**


	8. Chapter 8

Hiccup and Toothless have been on the move for several days now, stopping and spending the nights on uninhabited islands. The exiled young viking still hasn't figured out where to go or what to do about his predicament. He will achieve nothing by wandering around the archipelago, never coming into contact with civilization, but he will be hunted by any and all vikings who see him with Toothless. That's why he decided that he will head south and temporarly leave the viking civilization behind, but he still didn't know where to go.

The other problem was that he still didn't know how he would convince the vikings to accept that dragons are not blood-thirsty and vile beasts. At the moment, he and his dragon were on an uninhabited island on the very boarders of the Barbaric Archipelago, resting before they head for the coasts of England. He doesn't know how they view the dragons but hopefully, they will be more accepting and less violent. As far as he knew, while they are aware of their existence, the creatures aren't as common as they are in the archipelago and he doubts that there are any gigantic queen dragons making smaller dragons raid. It's a pretty safe bet to assume that their reaction to seeing a boy with a Night Fury would be different from the typical viking reaction, but nevertheless, he will exercise caution and will keep Toothless away from people for the time being.

A sudden pain in his right upper arm brought him back to reality. He grunted in pain and grabbed the arm tightly with his left hand. After the pain ebbed away, he used the same hand to unwrap the bandages that were present over the wound and hissed slightly as the cool night air touched the still sensitive bite marks. He acquired the wound the day before when he went to gather some berries on the island that they've previously stopped on. He had left Toothless on the shore and when he found a bush full of berries that he recognised were edible, he was attacked by a lone wolf. He had screamed for Toothless and had tried to get away but the wolf had managed to bite his arm. Thankfully, his dragon had come and killed the wolf.

However, the memory of the unfortunate event always left him feeling bitter and rather self-loathing. If he had been stronger, he could have defended himself and he wouldn't have had to rely on his dragon. It wasn't unheard of wolves attacking vikings while hunting, whether on Berk or on nearby islands where the vikings went to gather food. But the fact is, almost all vikings could easily kill a wolf if they happened to be attacked by one and sometimes even by several. His father was 15 years old when he was attacked by two wolves and he had managed to kill both of them with just a few scratches on his arms.

It's not that he minds relying on Toothless, but he knows that he can't _always_ rely on others to get him out of tough situations. He had to face facts; the world he lives in is a world of warriors, a world where danger lurks everywhere. He needs to learn how to fight if he wants to make it. This is especially true for him, considering the task he set out for himself. There will be many who will contradict him and try to kill him and there is the fact that most people respect and listen to people who back up their notions and ideals with combat skills, even if fighting has nothing to do with it. Vikings are simply like that and they won't consider his ideals if he can't fight with fists for them.

It's the way it is, even if it's a sad truth.

Beggars can't be choosers. Even if he wants everybody to respect and accept him primarly for other things, the only way he'll probably get everyone to pay attention to him is if he can kick some ass. The end of the war is far more important than his pride. If he came back one day with kick-ass combat prowess, the Berkians would be in for the bombshell of a lifetime. He could imagine Astrid's and his peer's wide-eyed expressions.

Astrid.

His beloved ex-wife is condemned to watch her fellow vikings kill the magnificent creatures they adore. He regrets his decision in leaving her behind and making her experience the horror that was not long ago her greatest desire. He also regrets that his father will probably marry her off to someone for the good of the tribe. She'll have to do the same things she did with Hiccup all over again, which includes the wedding night. The consumation of their marriage that Hiccup himself couldn't perform, but this other man undoubtedly will. He couldn't imagine how hard it would be for her, especially since she confessed that she loves Hiccup.

That's what he regrets the most; the time they will have to spend apart from each other just as they admitted their feelings to one another.

He shakes his head. He can't think like that now. He made his choices and he has to live with them. The only thing he has to think about right now is where to go from there. What he has to do is nothing easy. Heck, it may be the most difficult task anyone has ever set out for him or herself and it will take all his genius and effort to accomplish it.

He made a promise to himself and to Astrid, and if there is one thing you should know about the scrawny boy named Hiccup, is that he always keeps his promises.

* * *

Next to watching Hiccup leave and thinking that her father was going to die, this was her worst day ever.

Astrid was marching towards the kill ring where most of the villagers have already gathered. Today, she was going to kill the Monstrous Nightmare, the first dragon she'll kill.

And hopefully the last.

She had already decided that there was no other choice but to do it. The future of her people and the enslaved dragons depends on it too much. She might hate herself for it, but all people have done things they're not proud of. At the very least, this was out of her control and the thought brought a small amount of comfort to her. However, it won't make the whole 'killing the dragon' part any easier. She just hopes Hiccup could forgive her for doing this.

When she finally came to the arena, her nerves kicked in _big time._ There were so many people. She could see Stoick sitting in the chair outside the ring on the opposite side to the entrance. He was talking to a few others jovially, although even from that distance she could see the almost unoticeable sadness in his eyes. After a few moments, he turned to look at her.

She felt like fidgeting under his intense gaze, but was able to stand tall and proud with her head held high. She's not backing out of this and she'll be damned if anybody saw how unnerved she actually was. After staring at each other for a few seconds, Stoick just nodded.

While Stoick was stern and, well... _stoic _on the outside, inside he was almost as unnerved as Astrid. He didn't doubt her skills but he's lost almost all the family he has, she is one of the few people left. He has Gobber and his sister Agata and brother-in-law Spitelout and he is grateful for all of them, but nothing can replace the joy and comfort of your own spouse and child and he lost _both_.

When Hiccup had flown away on that beast, Stoick had been furious. How could_ his own son_ betray them? Side with the creatures that killed his own mother and many others. He wanted to curse him, forget he ever existed and burn anything that reminded him of his son. He had calmed down after he blew off some steam though he was still angry and frustrated.

_Why?_

Why did things turn out this way? Were the Gods punishing him for something? He had always done what's best for his people and had tried to be as good a family man that he could, though he knew he could have been a better father. But Hiccup was always awkward and un-viking like. How was he supposed to understand and get along with such an offspring when he himself was raised to be a perfect and traditional viking. Difference and change is something Stoick dislikes, but he tried to put it aside as much as he could when it came to his son. However, tradition and norms were too deeply ingrained in his mind for him to do it.

He had gone to the forge because, as little as he knew about Hiccup, he knew Hiccup drew a lot and liked taking notes and he wanted to _understand_. He hadn't really minded this unusual habit he had. In fact, to him, it was a good sign. A chief needs to handle many agreements, treaties and such things and they oftenly came in written form. It also meant his son did pay attention to the various parts of the village and probably had more clarity on the infrastructure, social events, routes etc. than his peers.

He had found his notebook in the backroom of the forge and he had been impressed. His drawings were awfully good and accurate and, even though he was still angry, slightly cursed himself for not noticing his talents. He had drawings of people, buildings, landscapes and not to mention various designs, inventions and even mathematical and physics equations. While he did not understand most of it, he understood that Hiccup, with his knowledge, could have made inventions that would have served well in many departments, not only his highly unsuccessful dragon killing department.

There were also upgrades to the already existing contraptions they used like additions to the catapults, mills and fishing nets and had also written in which way they would be effective and throughly explained the entire concept.

After that he went to the last notebook, which had pictures of the last several months considering the amount of pages used and the context of the drawings. A few pictures of Gobber, Stoick, his peers and some gatherings and events. After a few dozen pages he came across the picture of the Night Fury and anger had welled up in him. Thankfully, he had enough sense in him not to rip apart the notebook. There were several drawings of the dragon in which it looked suprisingly docile and... _playful._ However, the most notable thing was that Hiccup himself was in these drawings. The first drawings in which he drew himself were significantly older ones while Valhallarama was still alive. Not only that but Hiccup looked... _happy _in these drawings. He looked happier than Stoick had ever senn him in real life ever since his wife died and the dragon was always there. The most noteworthy picture was of him riding the Night Fury with huge smiles on both their faces.

That's when he understood.

His son had never drawn himself with his people because his people never accepted him. Stoick himself didn't truly accept him and Hiccup hadn't been happy with them. He was lonely and sad. The pictures radiated sorrow and loneliness and the lesson Val had told him that he had told Astrid came to his mind... and he had understood. At first, he wanted to blame his son since he was so different but realized that it was his own fault. He hadn't payed attention to him, hadn't spent time with him and he barely even made eye contact and it must have hurt him that his father was no different than his peers who made his life miserable.

It was all his fault. He could have done so many things to make Hiccup feel accepted and happier, at least by his own father.

And the being that Hiccup _had_ to look to aknowldgment for had to be the viking's mortal enemy. It was sacrilege but Hiccup must have been so fed up he didn't care.

He had failed as a father. The only thing he could do was try and make it right with Astrid by trying to be as good as a father to her that he had never been to Hiccup. Even though he'll probably never forgive himself for what he did, dwelling in the past and wallowing in misery only made things worse. He learned that the hard way when he lost his son because he couldn't get over Val's death.

That's why he was somewhat unnerved when he saw Astrid getting nearer and nearer to the weapons rack.

She grabbed a shield and after taking a deep breath she said,"I'm ready."

The two logs that held the Nightmare pen closed slowly started to move apart. After the logs have been completely moved, the doors were violently opened from the inside and the inflamed Monstrous Nightmare burst out and set it sights on her. It extinguished the flames and started to approach her slowly. It growled at the axe in her right hand.

Astrid took several deep breaths and readied herself for what she was about to do. There was no turning back and there was no other choice. She dropped into a battle stance and began the fight with a mighty war cry.

"RUUUAAAAAAAHHH"

The dragon narrowed it's eyes and charged at her with a roar while she did the same. Just as it was about to bite off a good chunk of her, she rolled to the side. She sprang up and, just as it turned to face her, smacked it in the face with her shield and quickly followed the flat of her axe. The Nightmare cringed and backed off a little but it soon enough growled at her and a visible red light was in the back of it's open maw, practically signaling Astrid that it was about to spew fire.

She quickly dodged to the side and ducked below the infernal, gel-like blast when it turned it's head to follow her movement while still breathing fire. She used the opportunity and charged at it with her axe raised high. The dragon jumped backwards but a cut was still made on the side of it's face which was deep enough to draw blood.

It enraged the Monstrous Nightmare even further and it charged at her and she dodged by flipping over it's head. However, it was able to turn directions and attack faster than she could react. She was able to begin dodging but was stll left with a deep wound on her left shoulder and got knocked to the side. Luckily, she got back to her feet quickly enough but realized that her left arm was virtually useless.

The Nightmare released a terrifiying roar, but Astrid had too much adrenaline in her blood to be scared. She charged at it but it dodged her swipe and it retaliated with it's wing but she ducked underneath it. It continued like that for another minute with the Nightmare getting a few more scratches and Astrid only getting one or two scrapes since the dragon was a bigger and easire target.

She attacked it again but it dodged and attacked back. She had to use her axe and both her arms to defend herself and when it struck her weapon, white hot pain spread through her arm and she couldn't help the wince. The Monstrous Nightmare noticed and capitalized on it, attacking her while she was still in pain. She screamed when the dragon left three gashes on her side and feel to the floor.

The dragon jumped back and prepared to deliver the finishing blow. She tried to find a way to save herself and noticed something right next to her.

Her shield.

She heard the dragon roar and charge at her. She quickly struck the shield with her axe and it got embedded in it. When the dragon finally got close enough, she sprang up to dodge the attack and with all her might struck the dragon in the head with the shield-embedded axe. The shield broke in many small pieces and the axe was free again as the dragon stumled back, dazed from the blow.

She ranned towards, raised the axe high and, with a final war cry, brought it down on the dragon's neck.

The dragon fell to the ground dead.

She looked at it and wanted to do nothing more than cry but she knew she couldn't do it. So she raised her axe high and the vikings cheered for her victory while Astrid mourned for the dead Monstroud Nightmare on the inside.


	9. Chapter 9

**\- 2 and a half years later -**

The sun was high up in the sky, looking down upon the people of Hull as they went through their daily lives. The market bustled with people as they bought, sold and traded. The sunny day was perfect for the children that were playing and the parents that were diligently supervising them while talking animatedly to each other. It was the second day without rain that had been recently pouring for a few weeks and the people were grateful for the small break since they knew that the rain will come back in a few days.

Hull is a small town, little over half the size of Berk, on the east coast of England and a famous spot for travelers, traders and the similar sort of people.

One of those people was Hiccup who was working in one of the town's forges. Currently, he was repairing some tools and weapons while constantly rubbing his forehead with his forearm to wipe off the sweat from there. He had spent the last several weeks in the town to earn some provisions. The 2 and a half years have done some good to him. The nearly 17 year old teenager has grown considerably, being 6'3 in height and had gained a decent amount of musculature to his once almost dangerously thin arms, legs and upper body.

He was wearing the same green tunic that, due to his size, wasn't exactly a tunic anymore. The sleves now reached his upper forearms and the shirt went to a little below his waist. He had given up his fur vest and green pants, now wearing a pair of brown pants and a necklace. The pendant is made of iron and took the shape of his best friend, the Night Fury, Toothless, coiling around himself. He was also wearing fur boots fairly similar to the regular viking ones.

As he worked, he couldn't help but think back to the years that he spent away from Berk. It had certainly been a sort of adventure. There had been both good and bad times, but more than anything, he had _learned so much_. For example, he had gone to England first where he learned that they believed in _one_ God. Such a thing was practically incomprehensible for a viking, even one as understanding and intelligent as Hiccup.

He had traveled to various other places, like France, Germany, Hungary and Byzantium. The knowledge they could give him was immesureable in every way and at the same time it baffled him and made him eager to learn. He had seen many different types of architecture, learned other methods of smithing, read books of various genre and so on.

However, he had been so engrossed in his quest for knowledge that he almost forgot about his more important quest; to bring peace between vikings and dragons. He had nearly forgotten about Astrid.

He had beaten himself up for it and he still does. When he reminded himself of his true purpose, he had thrown himself back into trying to figure out how to go about things, which was an admittedly difficult task.

The sound of a fist knockin against wood stopped his musing and he turned around to look at the bearded, smiling face of Manahil.

"You ok? You were out of it for a while there, you know." he said with an accent that obviously wasn't English or Norse.

Hiccup smiled back and sheepishly rubbed the back of his head,"Yeah. Sorry. Just got a little distracted is all."

Manahil looked down and shook his head in mock dissapointment,"Tsk, Tsk, Hiccup. The Almighty Alah wouldn't want you slacking off during working hours. I think the suitable punishment for it would be for me to give you a few extra bruises during today's training session."

Hiccup laughed nervously and said,"No need for that. I'm ok."

Manahil took pity on him and decided to stop teasing him. However, he was still a bit worried. When Hiccup is deep in thought, it's usually because he is insecure about something. When he is excited about something, even though he learned to keep his composure, there is a certain glint in his eyes. It wasn't there a few moments ago,"Are you sure?"

Hiccup just smiled fondly and nodded. Next to Toothless, this man understood him better than any other person he ever met. Manahil was a thin but somewhat muscular, fairly tall 40 year old man with tanned skin, a thin beard and moustache, and broad shoulders. He was wearing a somewhat baggy, green, long-sleeved shirt that was tight at the end of the sleeves and open at the upper part of his chest, red pants, a white sash that went around his right shoulder and left hip as well as another white one that went around his hips. He was also carrying a saber on his left hip. The only piece of clothing that didn't fit in were the fur boots.

He is a kind and wise man that taught Hiccup many things, including how to fight. Despite his affable demeanour, he was a real slave driver of a teacher, but, all things considered, Hiccup wouldn't want it any other way.

They had met in eastern Turkey, a part of Byzantium where Islam is the main religion. He had been hunting with Toothless in a small fertile part of the land that are rather rare there when they ran into each other. Manahil had attacked them but Toothless had injured him with a wound that would have been fatal if not treated. Since Hiccup had learned a bit of healing on his travels, since traveling alone with a dragon warranted it, he had patched him up and took him to a small, vacant house in which he was residing at the time.

When the man had woken up and Hiccup had explained to him that they weren't a threat, Manahil had calmed down suprisingly quickly and had been just as suprisingly understanding and... unjudgmental. They sort of hit it off since then. They had a lot in common and the two had no problem when finding a topic to talk about. Manahil had also quickly warmed up to Toothless and vice cersa.

When Hiccup learned that he was actually one of the best soldiers in the land, which was under the rule of a lord, he had asked him to teach him how to fight. The man had considered it and had agreed under one condition; that he finds him a dragon of his own and that they help him get away from his home. Hiccup was flabbergasted at first, but Manahil had explained to him that he hated it there, though he didn't divulge much else. He had also explained that even though he had enough wealth to travel all the way to the shoreline, it was still rather far away and the process of getting there would have been extremely wearisome and time-consuming. With Hiccup riding a dragon, the time would be cut down dramatically. All to eager for another dragon rider, Hiccup had not only agreed, but told Manahil that this was practically a win-win situation for him.

That had been a year and 8 months ago and Hiccup's fighting prowess had increased exponentionally. Manahil had first trained him to increase his physical skills like strength, stamina, speed and agility. He had explained that it was nearly pointless to know the proper moves and techniques, which were part mental since muscle memory is involved, if he didn't have the stamina to last in a fight or the strength behind his blows. He had made him do push-ups, sit-ups, pull-ups, running and dodging projectiles that were thrown at him etc., and every time Hiccup felt that the excersises were getting easy, Manahil would raise the level of difficulty. He had also made him eat more since he needed the energy to last the entire training session and have enough nutriments in his body for the muscles to properly develop.

After a few months, Manahil had given him a few weapons to try out. Hiccup had practised with a glave, a saber, a broadsword, an axe and several other weapons. They had been pleasently suprised when they found out that he was ambidextrous, even though he preffered his left hand a little over his right. After observing his apprentice, Manahil had decided that he was most suited for dual sabers, as the eastern-style sword was more fitted for someone of Hiccup's build than a broadsword.

Manahil's fighting style was more complictaed and, in Hiccup's opinion, more dangerous than the traditional viking method of combat. The vikings mainly fought using their strength with little to minimal agility and finesse in their movement, although reflexes and a certain amount of speed were neccessary. Manahil's style required at least a noteworthy amount of all of those, and were then combined with deadly precision, flawless movement and deeply honed techniques. He was exceptionally fast and agile, his reaction time was lightning swift and he had more strength than his thin but lean body gave the impression of.

Hiccup was a diligent student and had more talent for this method than he initially thought, though he didn't let it blind him and still worked as hard as his teacher pushed him. Due to travelling, they would temporarily live at different environments, and Manahil had used that to train Hiccup in getting used to different terrains and to generally increase his ability to adapt. He had taught him strategy and tactics, how to notice weaknesses and flaws in his opponents, how to exploit them and how to cover his own. By now, Hiccup thinks that, if Astrid had continued training as hard as she always did, he could probably match her and perhaps even beat her.

While the bearded man was a stern teacher, he always let his dragon riding student know that he had faith in him and that he was proud of his progress and proud of him in general. He would regale Hiccup with stories of his life, the battles and all his experiences. He tried to impart as many lessons he learned from his own experiences to him and, with time and to Manahil's ignorance, the teen had started to see him as a father figure.

Inspecting his work, Hiccup saw that he was finished and, after bidding his teacher goodbye, went to give the repaired tools and property back to the owner.

* * *

After knocking on the door, he didn't wait long for it to be opened by a kind looking man in his early forties who, upon seeing Hiccup, smiled.

"Hello Hiccup. Oh, I see you've finished fixing my things. Quick and effective as always, lad." said the man.

Hiccup blushed a little at his praise,"Just earning for a living, Mr. Henderson."

"Hahaha, aren't we all. You want to come in for a little tea. I'm sure my wife wouldn't mind."

Before Hiccup could respond with a polite negative, he was tackled and almost bowled over by an eleven-year old girl who decided to cling tightly to the young viking's waist.

"H-Hey Christina." said Hiccup, putting his hand on her head.

"C'mon, Hiccup, stay. Please?" she asked with her cute blue eyes widened for effect. She was a slim girl of average height for her age with black hair that reached her shoulder blades. She wore a long-sleeved, light brown shirt, somewhat darker leggings, boots with ropes criss-crossing on her shin and a necklace with the same pendant that he was wearing.

Looking at her eyes, Hiccup tried to find the strength to deny her request, although he knew it was an exercise in futility from the very start. He always fell for the puppy-eyes and she damn well knew it.

"Alright. Maybe I _could_ have a drink or two." he responds while lightly patting Christina's head. She smiles and drags him in while her father laughs at the entire situation.

In the kitchen there was a woman in her mid-thirties that looked a lot like Christina and had the same kind smile and pleasent atmosphere that the rest of the family had. When she noticed the unexpected guest she, just like her husband, smiled,"Hiccup. This is a nice suprise. What brings you here?"

"I had just fixed the tools your husband gave me and he invited me in. Or more accurately," he said while smiling fondly at the girl that was still holding his hand," your daughter used her incredible powers of persuasion to make me."

Both females giggled at his explanation. Mrs. Henderson gestured for him to sit down, which he did with slight awkwardness.

"Are you sure I'm not imposing?"

"Nonsense, boy. We are happy to have you here. You know we can never repay you for saving our little Christina's life." said Mr. Henderson.

Hiccup remembers the event quite vividly. It was a day after he came to Hull that a man had lost control of his cart that he was dragging uphill. Christina had been playing in the street and hadn't noticed the heavy object heading her way. He was passing by and at the last moment he had noticed the runaway cart and had jumped towards the girl, grabbed her and got both her and himself out of the way.

Her parents had seen the whole thing happen and had immediately thanked him profusely while hugging their crying daughter.

When the still teary-eyed girl shakily thanked him, he had noticed her staring at his necklace. He had asked her if she liked it, which she did, and had given it to her as a present and a an attempt to comfort her. She had beamed at him and hugged his neck while her parents managed to persuade him to join them for a drink.

Mr. Henderson sighed after taking a few sips of his tea,"That's real good. I have to thank you, Hiccup, for introducing us to tea. It's soothing and makes me feel all warm inside." he said with dreamy expression.

The female occupants of the household giggled at his expression,"Eret is right, dear. It really helps me relax and forget about the stress of these busier days." said Mrs. Henderson.

Eret Henderson smiled, though Hiccup noticed there was a slight bit of sadness in it,"Our son has sent us a good amount of valuable and useful materials and things, but nothing as truly as good as tea. At least, not in the food and drink department."

Hiccup looked at him in slight suprise,"I didn't know you have a son."

"He travels a lot. He works as a trader for various materials and as a bounty hunter. My son is quite the warrior, though the main reason he left was because after I acquired the sickness that has weakened me, even though it's not fatal, I couldn't work anymore and our family was growing poorer. He had sailed out to try and find a way to earn money for the family, which, as you have probably already noticed, he did."

Despite that, Hiccup noticed the sadness in their eyes, especially Christina's.

Eret continued,"However, we don't see him often anymore. We see him approximately five to six times a year _and_ he usually stays for only a few days."

Hiccup sympathized and asked him,"What's his name?"

Eret gave him an amalgam of a smile and a smirk, an expression at which his wife rolled her eyes, which didn't go unoticed by him,"What? If my memory serves me correctly, dear, it was _your_ idea. You said because I'm handsome and the whole idea was cute."

His wife gave him the same smile/smirk he has,"I did it because you _were_ handsome. But now," she shrugged in mock disinterest,"_now_ you're just _old_ and in the way."

Their daughter couldn't help but laugh at the statement while Eret himself hung his head in shame. Although Hiccup laughed a little too, he was still confused.

"Ugh" cough...cough "You still haven't answered my question, sir." the young viking said.

The male occupant perked up at that and scratched the back of his head in embarrasment,"Right. Well, he is only about three or four years older than you and about the same height. His name is" he stopped for dramatic effect, and Hiccup was eager to learn the reason behind the joke the man's wife had said.

The man waited for a few seconds while looking around the room in mock caution, as if expecting someone to be eavesdropping on them, before he said one, single word.

"Eret."

Hiccup's stared at him with an expression that was hard to discern, though it would be best described as a mixture of mild dissapointment, exasperation, counfusion, miff and Hiccup's usual deadpan.

"Eret?" Hiccup simply said.

The Henderson family laughed at his deadpan expression and tone, while Hiccup looked back at them with annoyance.

Eret finally got his breath back,"Aye, son. Did you expect something more?"

Hiccup shook his head and said,"No. It was just... anticlimatic."

Anna Henderson tapped her chin,"Well, he does introduce himself to other people in a more unique fashion."

The dargon rider just looked at them expectantly. The three family just glanced at each other before they looked at him and all three of them said it, as if practiced, at the same time.

"Eret, son of Eret."

* * *

**I'm really, _really _sorry about the delay. There was just so much schoolwork and other things, there was no time. And I'm sorry if the chapter is rather short. I know you all expected a longer chapter after not updating for so long. I had initially planned to make the biggest chapter so far, but I've decided to finish it here for now.**

**I'm quite sure that the next chapters won't take as long to update, but I won't be going back to the 4-7 days updating schedule I had before. There is simply too much studying that needs to be done, but I'll try to update every few weeks.**

**Enjoy for now. **

**Story recommendations:**

**Lightning And Death Itself, Hiccup's Bride, Dimmadreki, Heather Together and Did Anybody See That? - all by Cke1st**


	10. Chapter 10

The light of the full moon bathes the inside of Hiccup's forge in an ethereal, white glow where said forgemaster can be seen tidiying up his workplace. It's been a few days since the young dragon rider has found out about the Henderson family's son.

Hiccup had to commend his, according to the Hendersons, peer for his sense of responsibility and loyalty to his family, having decided to sacrifice quality time with them to try and find a way to give them as comfortable a lifestyle as possible. Although, considering the situation with his own blood relations, he does feel like a bit of a hypocrite.

Hiccup would really like to meet him, although that most likely won't happen since he'll be leaving Hull before Eret comes back. He is sure at least that his family will talk about him when he comes back. A small wave of sadness fills the viking when he thought about leaving. He really liked it here and he _really _liked the Hendersons and the thought of having to leave them dampens his spirit.

However, there is nothing he can do and can only hope once everything is over and done with, he'll come back to visit them.

Suddenly, he sees another light in the sky and he leans on the forge's window to stare at it. It looks like some sort of shining mass that somewhat resembles a falling star, although it's too slow to be one, not to mention there's a mass of smoke coming from it.

Suddenly, the glowing enigma starts to seemingly fall down towards the village and just as it's about to hit it...

**BOOM!**

The house which the fiery mass hit explodes in a shower of debris. The only thing Hiccup can do is stare wide eyed and dumb-founded before he hears the stomping of feet and the shouting of men in the distance. However, it doesn't sound like the frightened screams that he was expecting to hear. If anything, the shouting was quite similar to the war cries he would hear from the people of Berk when a dragon raid occured.

He climbes to the roof of his forge to get a better view and he gasps at what he sees.

There are a little over a dozen, foreign ships in the harbour with people rushing out of them, waving the various weapons they hold and shouting to the heavens.

The first thought that enters his mind is vikings. However, he dismisses the thought when he sees their clothing, weaponry and the emblem present on the sails of the biggest ship.

Hiccup climbs back down and grabs his weapons and gear and rushes out to engage them. There is no way he'll just leave these kind people to a horrible fate on their own. Besides, he hasn't tested himself against an actual enemy yet.

The first opponent he reaches lunges at him with his sword. Hiccup easily sidesteppes the attack and with one hand grabs the wrist holding the sword and brings him in closer while using the flat of the palm of his other hand to strike him in the chin. After that he does a quick but powerful roundhouse kick to the side of his head which effectively knocks him down and out.

Another immidietaly comes at him and Hiccup simultaneously ducks and spins while holding his right leg out. He purposely sweeps only one of his enemy's legs so that he loses his balance but doesn't fall down just yet. Hiccup capitalises on it and delivers a left hook to the foreign man's face.

After that he is attacked by two of the invaders at the same time. He succesfully parries and avoids their lunges, although he received a shallow cut on his arm. After a few seconds of doing this he goes on the offensive by grabbing the wrist holding the weapon of one of his opponents and pulls it to block the blow of the other man while at the same time striking the first one in the stomach with his elbow. He then continues pulling the wrist while simultaneously lowering his upper body and sweeping his own leg in an upwards motion, which causes to do the same thing to the leg of the first man. The entire action causes the first invader to tumble over Hiccup's back and into the second one.

While Hiccup was doing this, he had transferred the grip from his opponent's wrist to the handle of the axe he was holding, which caused the man to lose his grip on the weapon when Hiccup performed the technique.

Hiccup quickly throws the axe which buries itself into the side of the head of the man to which the axe originally belonged to. He immediately continued with his assault and rushed forward. He delivered a straight kick to the face of the other one who had just sat up.

He was given a few seconds of respite and when Hiccup gained the time to think again, he was astounded at what he had done. While he knew he trained a lot and finally knew how to fight, he never knew that he was _this _good. He had defeated four opponents easily and as if they were nothing. This was one of the few times he felt a rather foreign emotion surge through him.

Pride

Not the arrogant sort his cousin so oftenly exhibited, but pure, unadulterated happiness at his own accomplishment. Not that he felt happy about killing one of the invaders, but for the first time, he felt like he had the power to fight for his cause as well as the power to protect.

The only time he felt more proud of himself was when he and Toothless went on their first true test flight and he had let instincts guide him instead of reading the cheet sheet.

He was cut out of his musings when a house that was near his location was hit by a jet of fire and what he saw left him slack jawed.

Armored dragons were attacking the village.

_What?!_

The metal coated dragons were raining Hell upon the houses and the villagers, turning wood to charcoal and the screams of the people were the last things you heard before they were engulfed in the flames.

_They have dragons_, Hiccup thought. The whole scene somewhat reminded him of the raids back on Berk, except the people weren't strong enough to defend themselves.

Dragons attacking villages for food because they were forced by a giant queen dragon was one thing. However, people using dragons to kill other people, to conquer and to... destroy was another. It made him sick to his stomach. It even made him want to cry. But more than anything...

It made him _furious._

He never felt such untamable, wild rage before. Dragons were amazing creatures, undeserving of the harsh treatment that most humans bestowed upon them. _This _went against everything he believed in. Everything he was trying to accomplish.

This is the first time he felt that someone had to die.

Thankfully, even though he was still full of anger, he calmed himself down somewhat. This wasn't the time to let his emotions cloud his jusdgement. Manahil's lesson made sure to let him know that. After all, anger is a good servant, but a bad master.

So Hiccup let his anger fuel him, but before he charged in, he put his hands around his mouth in an 'o' shape before he let out a loud and animalistic sound that was something in between a roar and a howl.

The people who heard the chill inducing roar turned to look at him. He stared back at the enemy with righteous fury in his eyes before he took the two 35 inch-long scimitars he had made recently from the harness on his back. The upper part of the blades curved slightly inwardly before they ended with a sharp point and then curved inwardly again, although the length of the curve was much shorter and again ended with a sharp point. The lower sides of the blades, from tip to handle, curved outwardly before they curved sigthly inwardly at the very end.

They had a circular hand-guard and the handle itself was mostly wrapped in black leather, though the middle part of the handle wasn't and remained silver in color. It also had a button at the very top and the bottom took the shape of a dragon's head with an open mouth. Although it wasn't wrapped in black leather, it was still colored with the same dark shade.

With a rather emotionless look on his face (although a small scowl was present), he charged right at the enemy.

With exceptional speed, agility and grace, he hacked through the enemy invaders. He was on the offense and defense simultaneously, slashing and thrusting at them while at the same time dodging and parrying their attacks. He combined his swordmanship skills with his close combat prowess, using kicks, knees, elbows and sometimes even punches to either kill or incapacitate them.

He got a few very shallow scratches, though nothing close to worrisome. Some physically stronger ones managed to temporarily knock him off balance, key word being _temporarily. _He would regain his balance before his enemy could strike a blow every single time, sometimes even using his seemingly lost equilibrium to lure an enemy closer, only to take them out with great skill.

One of the visibly stronger ones used a direct thrust at him with his sword. Hiccup spun to the side to avoid while at the same time bringing down the end of his scimitar on his wrist, making him drop the weapon. Continuing with his spin, he kicked the man in the stomach, making him double over, after which he again brought down the end of his blade on his neck, knocking him out.

Two invaders attacked him at the same time, though he noticed a big gap between them. He used it to side flip between them, after which he stabbed both through the back before they could even turn around.

He noticed two of the foreign men attack him from opposite directions. He capitalised on it by parrying both strikes with each of his scimitars by spinning slightly, causing both men to lurch forward and out of balance. Before they could either fall or regain their footing, Hiccup spun again but in the opposite direction with his blades outstretched, cleanly cutting their heads off.

He noticed a bigger mass of the invaders approaching him, no doubt having noticed him killing off their comrades and have decided to use strength in numbers.

Hiccup prepared himself for the inevitable attack. However, when they started coming forward, they heard a shriek that was alll too familiar to some of them, but most of all to Hiccup. He smiled before taking a few steps back. Those not familiar with the sound were confused, but they quickly got their answer when a purple bolt struck them and promptly exploded, killing or injuring most of them.

Then, in the space between the inavders and the young viking, landed a large black dragon.

Hiccup smiled at his best friend, "Always good to see you, bud."

Toothles warbled back at him before refocusing his glare on the enemy. He had grown significantly since they left Berk. He was now over 35 feet long, most of the spikes on his body have grown bigger and his wingspan was close to 60 feet long. The most noticeable difference was that the part where his 'eyebrows' would have been, started growing a spike that was of the same materials as the rest of the spikes. The base of the spike covered most of the 'eyebrow' and the spike went mostly sideways, unlike the ones on his back. It ended with a short, sharp tip at the end of the brow. Hiccup had noticed that his head had grown slightly longer and that his eyes, while still mostly big and round, had also grown a bit longer, somewhat resembling hawk's eyes.

The entire change made not only his head but his entire body more aerodynamic, making him faster than ever.

He growled at the invaders while Hiccup was climbing on to him. He had made an automatic tail for Toothless, which could be changed by pulling a small lever that was near the foot pedal, something which Toothlees himself could do. That meant that the rigging could be changed from automatic to dependant on the pedal.

Pulling the lever so that Hiccup would be the one in control, he chrouched and vertically took off.

They started destroying the various weapons that the invaders brought on the shore. They retaliated by throwing nets at them, but Toothless was too fast and agile to be caught. Even though he didn't like it, they also brought down a few of the armored dragons.

After a minute Hiccup noticed that they were gathering the people they didn't kill into some sort of dome's which split through the middle. They looked big enough to hold over a dozen people.

They landed before them, and they both prepared to fight before a loud voice interrupted them.

"ENOUGH!"

With that one word, everything stopped. Hicccup turned to look where the voice came from and was greeted with the sight of a man who was probably even bigger than his father. He had slightly tanned skin, long scratches on his face and was wearing some sort of cloak over his left arm. He was also carrying a bullhook in his right hand.

The large man steped forward and looked at Hiccup and Toothless with a calculating gaze. After what seemed a few minutes he finally spoke, "Who are you?"

The young viking wanted to gulp, but, not wanting to show weakness, he steeled his face and spoke back.

"It's common courtesy for you to introduce yourself first." he said with his unique deadpan humour.

The invaders started shouting at the apparent disrespect, but they stopped when the man raised his hand. Instead of appearing angry as Hiccup expected, he actually grinned and chuckled a little.

"I admire your courage, boy. Very well." He stepped forward and in a louder voice said, "I am the dragon god Drago Bludvist"

_Dragon god?, _Hiccup thought while the invaders cheered.

"There, I have introduced myself. Now, again, who. Are. You?" Drago said.

"I am Hiccup Haddock."

Drago chuckled. "Pleasure." he said with mock politness.

Hiccup scowled, "Why are you doing this? What have these people done to you?"

"I have nothing against these people. Conquering this town was just one of the many steps to achieving my goal."

"And what goal is that?"

"Peace."

The dragon rider stared at him incredulously. After killing so many people and destroying an entire town, he actually said _that._

_"_P-peace?! How can you call this peace? Look at what you have done."

"Sometimes sacrifices must be made. I don't expect ignorant brats like you to understand. Fear is the best motivator. Humans cling to their lives and will do or say anything to keep themselves alive."

Drago took a step closer, "I know what you are thinking. Just looking at you I can see what kind of person you are. You believe that people can understand and sympathize with each other. Let go of the hatred and animosity that they feel towards one another, all for the greater good."

He took another step, "FOOL! Humans are selfish, prejudiced and greedy beings. They don't look at the bigger picture and even if they did, they wouldn't let go of their hatred and preconceived notions. Anything they find odd or different, they will scorn it, not giving it a chance. In a war, bothe sides feel pain and loss, but that won't create an understanding between them because both sides look only towards their own pain and loss."

Hiccup was angry, but a part of him knew that some of Drago's points were valid. Humans _are _prejudiced, self-centered and spiteful beings. But that doesn't mean that what Drago is doing is justifiable. There _are _good people in this world.

"That doesn't mean it's okay to go around massacring people like this. You are no different than the selfish and spiteful people you just described" Hiccup said.

"I _am _different. Other people slaughter one another for riches and goods or out of spite or out hundreds of other selfish and petty reasons. I am doing this for the greater good. Yes, people will die, but in the end, what I'm doing is for everybody's own good."

Drago took one more step," People are killed, families are ripped apart and wars are waged because people don't know what's important. These things happen because of stupid and silly things like... _tradition _or _honor. _I've seen familes end because _family honor _becomes more important than the family itself. I've seen bonds torn apart and dimwitted decisions made because they stick to tradition instead of using their own heads. People like that are willing to cause pain and suffering to the living so that they can appease the dead. They are not willing to leave their comfort zone and do the right thing because of pride and ignorance."

He took another step, "People are greedy and you wouldn't belive the things they would do to gain what they wanted. I have killed, that is true, but I have not been uneccessarily cruel to people and I have always made their death as swift and painless as possible. I have told my soldiers to never rape a woman or take enjoyment in making others suffer because everything is done for the good of everbody and not just ourselves."

"_I _AM THE ONE WHO IS GOING TO BRING PEACE TO THIS WRETCHED WORLD"

Hiccup stared at him before hanging his head. He couldn't help but think about Berk, the people there and how he connected Drago's words with them. After about a minute, he raised his head and everybody could see the determined glint in his eyes.

"Many of those things are true. I am not as inexperienced and ignorant as I might seem, Drago. I know how prejudiced people can be. I know how unreasonable and spiteful they can be. Trust me, I know all of those things, but there are people who are good. There are more diamonds in the rough that there appear to be. Humans might be capable of the greatest evil, but they are also capable of the greatest good." Hiccup said.

"Boy, I do belive that people are capable of change. Change is a part of life. But the world is a very big place. Thre simply isn't time for trying to change every single person and make them see the big picture, nor can you focus _all _your efforts on that one task. Not to mention that many people are unwilling to change, even if they are capable of it." Drago retorted.

"It's worth a try."

"Don't be an idealistic fool. The only way to achieve something worthwhile is by being pragmatic and realistic. _That_ is true wisdom. It goes to show that you're not as worldly as you might think and you cannot achieve peace in the world or even in a part of the world if worldliness is what you lack."

"I know all about pragmatism. I will not lie when I say that I was once overly idealistic nor will I lie when I say it's not a good thing to be overtly idealistic. But I had a good teacher who knocked some sense in to me and I learned that one should not let idealistic beliefs cloud one's judgement to reality." Hiccup responded before raisng one of his swords and pointing it at Drago.

"However, I believe it's good to have some form of idealism inside you. In this cold and _wretched _world, that might not be such a bad thing. True peace will never be achieved if people don't have some of those beliefs to motivate them. Not everything in this world is bound to logic and reason. We both know that poeple can lack those things. So maybe then, sometimes at least, foolish idealism might be the best answer."

Drago scoffed, "I still think you're a fool."

Hiccuped scoffed back, "Maybe, but if you keep going with this, the world will never know true peace."

"Maybe, but it'll be far more than _you'll_ ever achieve. If you keep going with your own foolish notions, you'll die before you achieve any semblence of peace and understanding."

Toothless growled at that, but stopped when his rider raised his arm.

Drago looked mildly impresses at that, "Not bad. Looks like you know a couple of things about these creatures as well. If I was some fool, I would ask you to join me and try to persuade you about your feeble-minded beliefs, but I am no fool and I do not take any chances when I don't have to."

Hiccup smirked, though fear was starting to grip him inside, "Sorry, but our ideals clash a _little too much._"

"So it seems. But don't worry, even though we don't agree, you wanted peace and I respect that, so I'll tell my soldiers to aim for your vital spots. It will be quick and painless." With that, Drago gave the signal for his men to finish him.

As Hiccup readied himself, he could feel the ground trembling slightly. He was confused at first, but quickly realized the implications of it. He put the scimitars back into the harness and lowered his hands to his shins, where there were several small containors that held Zippleback gas.

As the invaders were about to throw their weapons at him, the trembling grew in strength. Not long after, a huge, dark green and snake like body erupted from the ground with Manahil on it's back.

The soldiers all faltered at the appearance of the great Whispering Death, which quickly started throwing spikes and breathing fire at them. Hiccup immediately opened a few containers and, before he could breath the gas, threw them at the invaders that were guarding the domes that held the prisoners. One after another, they passed out, except for Drago who used his cloak to cover his mouth and nose.

Before he could give any orders, he was knocked back by the tail of a very large and orange dragon. It had coral like protrusions on the sides of it's head and four wings.

"Cloudjumper, tear the domes open!" Hiccup shouted.

The Stormcutter complied and, using the large but maneuverable spikes on his upper wings, tore them open. There were about half a dozen people inside the first one and they all screamed at the sight of the frightening beast.

Hiccup quickly tried to calm them down, "Everybody out. Cloudjumper, the other one. Toothless! Manahil! Keep the invaders back."

Hiccup couldn't find the Hendersons in the first bunch, but when Cloudjumper opened the second dome, he was relieved to find Christina. However, when he couldn't find her parents and saw the tear tracks on the girls face, the feeling of dread came back.

He gently, but firmly grpped Christina's shoulders, "Christina, where are your parents?"

She shook her head and looked at him with miserable eyes befor she began sobbing. That was all the confirmation he needed and felt coldness creeping up inside of him.

They were dead.

He felt tears pricking at his eyes as he held the girl close to him. Even the people chose to temporarily ignore the dragons and look at them with compassion. Many of them had just lost one of their own loved ones in the invasion, and with the adrenaline and panic slowly leaving their bodies, it all finally caught up with them.

Hiccup looked up and noticed Drago Bludvist with a few of his soldiers preparing themselves. Like earlier that evening, he felt untamable rage, but this time it was stronger and deadlier. He wanted to kill them. He wanted to kill all of them.

Before he could act on it, a hand fell on his shoulder which caused him to look up at Manahil.

The muslim could see the sorrow and indignation in his eyes, but, frankly, this was not the time for that, "Hiccup, we _need _to get out of here. I know you're angry but these people are in danger here. We have to go."

Hiccup wanted to protest and say that Drago needs to pay for what he's done, but he knew that his mentor was right. Reigning in his anger and sadness, he composed himself and spoke to the survivors, "Everybody, get on the dragons."

They looked about ready to protest but Hiccup continued, "DON'T ARGUE WITH ME NOW! WE NEED TO LEAVE OR WE'RE ALL GOING TO DIE!"

They still looked unsure, but they finally complied. In total, including the riders, the dragons would have to carry 14 people. There were 5 dragons, with two more dragons having joined the fray, a Gronckle and a Thunderdrum. Hiccup put Christina in front of him and one more person behind him on Toothless, 4 would ride atop Cloudjumper, 2 with Manahil on his female Whispering Death, Maira, 2 atop Thornado and another 2 atop the male Gronckle, Boulderskin.

"STOP THEM!" Drago shouted.

However, they were too slow and the survivors and dragons escaped before any of their weapons could reach them.

As the specks grew smaller and smaller, the mad conqueror could only look on with disdain and contempt in his eyes.

"I will get you, Hiccup Haddock. There is only enough place for **one **dragon master in this world. There is only one destiny that awaits you on the path you have taken."

With that, he turned back to return to his ship with one single thought running through his mind.

Death

* * *

**This is probably the best chapter I have written so far.**

**We not only see Hiccup in action, but we also see Hiccup's character in this story as well as Drago's. As you can see, Hiccup isn't as idealistic and naive as he is in canon, having had Manahil as a mentor. Of course, there are still a good amount of similarities but I don't want any flames from people, complaining how I'm not sticking to the prortayal of Hiccup that most other authors do.**

**I'd also like to inform you that I might rewrite the first few chapters. They simply didn't turn out as good as I hoped the to be.**

**Story recommendations:**

**65: From One Misunderstanding by cali-chan**

**Unto The New Dawn by knownobody**

**To Boldly Flee by John Mccallistair**


	11. AN

**Dear readers,**

**I'm sorry but this is not a chapter. I'm simply announcing that I decided to revise and rewrite some of the first few chapters. The first chapter has already been revised. The actual next chapter probably isn't going to come for a few weeks, but keep coming back to this fic to check out the revised chapters which will have the date of revision written on the top.**

**Thank you for reading and have nice day.**


	12. Chapter 12

They had been travelling for a little over a week now, landing on uninhabited islands and staying there for a couple days before moving on. The invasion on Hull, not to mention the massacre of it's people, weighed heavily on their hearts and minds. The atmosphere was constantly somber and melancholic, the experience having caught up with them now that the danger has momentarily passed.

The depression hit Hiccup as well, though for the most part he hid it, since the survivors needed him to be strong, especially Christina, though he had been notably more irritable than normal. That was seen when they had landed for the first time and had been, or at least in Hiccup's opinion, overly suspicious of him and questioned him too much.

He had lost his temper and ranted at them about how ungrateful they were, though Manahil calmed him down and told him to see it from their perspective. In the end, with the rather unpleasent experience they had with dragons as well as the stories they probably heard about them, Hiccup admitted that they had good reasons to be wary.

Thankfully, it all worked out in the end and the people aren't as cautios and suspicious around them as they were before.

It reminded him though that, despite his tremendeous reluctance, they needed to reach civilization. They needed food, supplies and human contact and they couldn't keep running like this for the rest of their lives.

They could see the lights from a decent sized village which is, according to one of the more experienced and knowledgeable survivors, a well known trading port. They had hid their dragons in a large cavern with a vine and moss covered entrance which Cloudjumper found on accident and were currently walking towards the village.

Fortunately, they had enough money to spend several nights and buy the necessary privisions, thanks to Manahil grabbing both his and Hiccup's earnings before he went to get the dragons, which is quite a lot since there wasn't usually much need for them to spend it in their travels, having usually hunted their own food and collected their own water.

As they entered the busy town, Hiccup turned to them, "Okay, all of you have enough money to buy yourselves some food and supplies, though I'm sure I don't need to tell you to try and spend as little as possible. We'll meet back at the cavern in three days at noon to discuss how we're going to proceed from here."

"What if we want to stay here. We can't keep living like this forever, you know." said Marcus, a middle aged man. The others nodded at his words.

"We don't have the money to buy each and every one of you a home and we _definately_ don't have the money to stay in an inn indefinately. Another reason is that you don't have a way to earn money." Hiccup retorted. The survivors reluctantly agreed to his reasoning.

"However, it doesn't mean you shouldn't try to apply yourselves to certain jobs if you have expertise in a certain field. I'll go to a blacksmith stall and try to work there for a little money and you should try and do the same." Hiccup continued.

All of them nodded, though a somber tension filled the air. After a few moments, Emily, a woman in her mid-twenties, spoke her mind, "Can we really keep living like this? Like fugitives and nomads with no place to call home? Travelling for the sake of survival while constantly watching our backs and sleeping with one eye open."

The sullen mood only increased at her words. Hiccup felt Christina, who was holdong his hand, tighten her grip in sorrow and frustration. Hiccup sighed and squeezed back, though in what he hoped was reassurance and compassion.

"No, it'll get better. If some of you manage to find a job with a good enough pay here, I'd advise you to stay. The rest of us can keep travelling til we find a place where we can live. The best advice I can give you is to find something you're good at and make a living out of it." Hiccup said, "Besides, we're gonna have to seperate anyway. I have a promise I made to someone that I have to fulfill and it's too dangerous a road for me to allow you to walk with me."

All of them (except Manahil) looked at him strangely at that, but after a couple minutes agreed with him and felt a little better at his words.

Manahil just nodded, "Okay, now each of us will go our own way, though it's better that we stick in small groups of three or four. Try not to reveal where you're from. We cannot trust anyone. Who knows how many people are in Drago's pocket and we can't allow him to track us down."

After they aknowledged his words, they parted in small groups with Christina going with Hiccup and Manahil. Not long after that, the eastern man gave his apprentice the signal to stop. Hiccup looked at him strangely, but complied, which caused the young girl to hault her walk as well.

After looking at him pointedly for a few moments, which gave Hiccup a small squirm, Manahil spoke, "Hiccup, I've been thinking about this for the last several days and I've finally decided."

Hiccup just raised an eyebrow, "What is it?"

His mentor held his gaze firmly before speaking, "I want you to teach Christina how to fight."

Suprise would be an understatement, if one was to try and find a word for how Hiccup and Christina felt at that moment. After finding his voice, he said, "But, master, why? You haven't finished teaching _me_ yet and I don't think I'm ready to take on a student."

"No one is, but you learn. Becoming a teacher is as much of a learning experience for the teacher as it is for the student. And you're right about me not being finished with you yet, but I'm sure we'll manage to do both." Manahil reasoned.

"But I'm not _nearly _ready for it. You have so much to teach me before I can take on an apprentice."

"You wish to spread the word abot the nature of dragons, right?"

"Right, but what does that have to do with anything?"

"In order to do all that you'll need to teach it to them. Not to mention teach them dragon riding. Besides, this is for Christina as well. It's a dangerous road up ahead and she needs to know how to defend herself." Manahil concluded.

"But she just went through so much. Do you really think it's right to burden her even more?"

I sympathize but, frankly, unless she has skill in some useful field that could benefit us, she'll just slow us down and be a burden herself."

Hiccup scowled. This is one of the few times he felt really angry at his mentor. The way he just talked about Christina reminded him of how the people of Berk talked about himself.

"You sounded just like them, you know that?"

Manahil narrowed his eyes. knowing Hiccup's past he knew what his apprentice was talking about.

"If she is a burden you'll just leave her behind cause it's more convenient for _you, _is that it?"

"Your quest is hard enough as it is, but with Drago on our backs, things are now probably over two times as hard."

"I will not leave the people who are family behind. If she slows me down or makes things a bit harder I'll gladly carry her along with me. Besides, I shouldn't expect such sentiment from a man who believes in a religion where you are allowed to throw rocks at people publicly for the most miniscule break of tradition!"

Manahil's body stilled at those words.

"And if I have to end my apprenticeship to you to do it than SO BE IT!" with that Hiccup continued walking with Christina, passing Manahil who was still frozen in his spot.

However, if he had stayed a little, he would have seen the tears that flowed from his mentor's eyes and down his face.

Ex-mentor's anyway.

* * *

As Hiccup walked down the rather busy path in the market, he was still fuming. How could his mentor have talked about Christina like that? The man he trusted and believed in more than anyone? How could he have sounded so much like _them_? So callous, so utilitaristic and so selfish?

Despite his goal, the _greater good _is a loathsome concept for him. To believe that the result justifies the method and that you could do anything, no matter how vile and cruel it is, as long as it's for the best. Such beliefs turn good people into monsters. They get used to doing such things and it becomes normal to them. Hiccup could never imagine himself becoming like that.

However, while he would never leave Christina behind, a part of him knew that Manahil was right when he said he had to train her. The man just got his message across in a very... distasteful way. Though he still didn't regret his words since what Manahil implied was unacceptable for him.

He stopped in front of a average looking shop. He needed to buy some tools and other provisions since he lost most of them in the invasion.

As they entered, they saw that the shop had several different sections with various goods in each of them; weapons, tools, furs, charts etc.

"Christina, why don't you go look at some of the stuff? I'll talk to the owner and buy some things. If you find anything interesting, let me know, ok?" he said gently.

She nodded before going to one of the sections. As she dissapeared from his view, he called out "Excuse me, is somebody here? I'd like to buy a couple of things."

Not long after that, out of one of the rooms in the back came a single man. He was around Hiccup's age, probably a couple years older, had black hair pulled back in a pony tail, a tattoo like beard on his chin, a yellow vest and dark blue pants. He was about the same height as him and well built.

"Hello and how can I help you?" he asked politely.

"I just need a hammer, a knitting kit, tongs and a couple of large furs."

"Quality?"

"Average for all of them."

The man nodded and after about a minute came back with all the items, Hiccup checked them and nodded. He pulled out the pouch and put the needed amount of money after asking the price.

"Rough day, huh?" the seller asked.

"Hmm?" Hiccup stared confused at him.

"I can see it in your eyes and posture. Had a fight with your girlfriend, ey mate?" he asked with a small smile.

Hiccup chuckled "I wish. I actually had a disagreement with a... friend who I trusted a lot."

"I see. Sorry for prying. Anyway, my shop will be open for a few more days and after that I'll be leaving, so if you want to buy everything you want I suggest you do it now or in the next couple days, if you like my goods."

Hiccup nodded "Thanks for the info, uh..."

The man palmed his own forehead "Where are my manners." he spread his hands in a bit of a grandiose fashion "I am-"

"Eret?" they heard a small, feminine voice say.

They both turned to look at the source when Eret's eyes widened "Christina?"

* * *

**Dum, dum, duuuuuum.**

**Sorry for the delay. Again. A bit of a short chapter, but an important one.**

**I don't wanna offend any muslims with what I wrote. I respect all religions, but I had to write things from Hiccup's perspective. Not to mention it's a very important fact in Manahil's history which won't be disclosed for at least five more chapters.**

**If anybody is interested, I have started writing a new fic. It's a Naruto fic called Tobirama Senju Reincarnated: The Second Hokage's Heir.**

**Til next time on Taking Measures**


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